


you're cold and i burn

by hellothebrave



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Basically, Bottom Harry, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Kinda not, M/M, SUPERHERO FIC, Superheroes, They have superpowers, but that's at the veeeeeery end, im sorry, in all honesty, kinda like xmen, larry stylinson - Freeform, louis and harry hate each other, mentioned lilo, mentioned ziam - Freeform, mentions of mpreg, my bottom louis girls please don't hate me, past lilo, present lilo - Freeform, superhero, superhero au, they don't kick ass or anything, they're mutants, they're technically just mutants, this may or may not have smut in it, we'll see how bad i am at writing smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-04
Updated: 2015-07-04
Packaged: 2018-04-03 18:43:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 36,875
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4111138
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hellothebrave/pseuds/hellothebrave
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>superhero/mutants au in which fire and ice are opposites for a reason (so are louis and harry).</p><p>featuring: liam, niall, zayn, ed, perrie, jade, and sam (smith)</p>
            </blockquote>





	you're cold and i burn

**Author's Note:**

> whaaaat? ANOTHER superhero au??? wasn't one enough? NO friend, it wasn't. i just had to make another one. basically, my other superhero fic (which totally sucked total ass???) did (surprisingly) good (probably because superhero fics are rare and that was one of the only ones and there needs to be more) so i decided, hey, why not write an even (hopefully) BETTER one where louis has powers too and there's more characters to add in the chaos?
> 
> and I'm just now realizing this but they're not really heroes, they just have powers.
> 
> (and I'm sorry to LM fans for only adding perrie and jade, i was going to add leigh and jesy but i had no idea where'd they fit. next time they'll be there)
> 
> plus, i really wanted to use that line from Settle Down by The 1975 because i've always LOVED it and that's what actually inspired me to make another superhero fic, so thank those problematic bastards. 
> 
> ps this has past lilo and mentions of (some) fwb lilo aka them kissing, because lilo should be real.
> 
> (so is this a larry or lilo fic? uhh. technically a bit of both. srry)
> 
> FOR THOSE OF YOU SKETCHY ABOUT THE LILO IN THIS FIC: no graphic stuff happens between them, there's mentions of them having sex but nothing detailed. there's lilo moments in the first half but it turns into ziam and larry! you're okay!
> 
> this is dedicated to brenda because she loved you look so cold and she worked her bum off to read through the whole thing. thank u my love, i love you.
> 
> ENJOY! xx
> 
> Disclaimer: I obviously do not own any one or anything in this. Everything written in this is fiction.

**I 11 & 9 I**

 

  There's a  _drip drop_ echoing in the house, every time Louis blinks it seems like the noise gets louder. It can't be passed midnight considering he's been awake since he first laid down. His eleven year old, energy filled, body can't sleep. Even after a day of endless training with the rest of the children and teens in the house. His restless legs lead him out of bed, down the several steps of the enormous house. As he reaches the first floor, no one seems to be awake. The sound of the TV playing, what can only be made out to be Superman, fills the silence of the night; along with the leaking faucet. He turns the corner towards the main loft, wanting to turn off TV and save money since it's usually on all day anyways. As Louis goes in front of the couch to search for the remote, he jumps when he realises someone is in fact watching it.

 

"Zayn, you're not supposed to be up." Louis whispers to the younger boy, sitting down, eyes set on the TV with no intentions of looking back at him. Zayn grunts. "You know I can't sleep."

Louis says nothing and bites his cheek.

"It's pretty stupid."

"No it's not," Louis comments. "It's not like you have a choice to stay awake--"

"No, not that." Zayn says, nodding at the man in the cape on the television. " _That._ People think it's some kind of awesomeness. They want it, the power. It's dumb."

Louis sighs, patting Zayn's shoulder. His attention is taken away from the other boy as he hears the front lock jiggle. "Wake me up if you're bored later, Toby's back though, I'm gonna go talk to him about something."

   Louis runs to the front door, unlocking it before the man behind it can, swinging it open and greeting him. A late teen in a leather jacket with dark hair and grey eyes looks down at Louis, shaking his head. That man being Toby.

"Lou, you're supposed to be sleeping." Toby says, still standing outside.

"I can't sleep. Are we having training tomorrow?"

"Everyday until you're eighteen," Toby replies. "Move, now. We have an addition."

Louis scrunches his nose. "Who?"

Toby looks behind himself, holding his hand out. Louis watches as a smaller, pale, nearly grey, hand grabs it back. Basically emerging from the shadows, a boy younger than Louis becomes visible in sight. As guessed, he's as pale as his tiny hand, with piercing mint coloured eyes and lips the colour of red wine. He's dressed in a navy blue hoody, hanging over his curly hair and matching his pyjama pants.

"You're getting cold," Toby says to the boy, shaking his arm.

The boy looks up at him, shrugging as if to say,  _Eh. It's nothing I'm not used to._

"No, like your hand."

This time, the boy automatically lets go, stepping in front of Toby and walking in.

"Louis, this is Harry. Harry, this is Louis. Louis' only a bit older than you, eleven, okay? Louis, he's nine." Toby turns back to Harry. "You'll be rooming with Sam, he's asleep right now but Lou will take you to the right room. I'll get your bags, you can just go to bed. Louis, lead him to his room, please."

Louis doesn't say anything, he just nods and runs upstairs, hoping Harry will follow suit. He in fact is, only a couple of steps back. Sam's room, being on the second floor, on the other side of the hall, right across from Louis' room, doesn't take long to locate.

"Toby set up your bed and stuff already." Louis explains. "Goodnight."

"'night." Harry says back, giving Louis a hesitant smile before disappearing into the room.

 

~~**\------------** ~~

 

**I 17 & 15 I**

 

   Training started thirty minutes ago, but Louis had different intentions that included pinning a certain sixteen year old to the wall of the broom closet and kissing him until he was a whimpering mess. Priorities.

"We're late for training," Liam pants as Louis kisses a hickey onto his neck. "No marks--"

"As if no one knows, it's been two years." Louis replies, pushing away from him with his hands still on the wall on either side of Liam's head.

 "I still don't like marks." Liam says, moving out from under Louis. "Let's go."

"Fine," Louis sighs, taking a moment to eye Liam's lips swollen from kissing and his hair tousled from Louis' hands.

"What?" Liam says when he realises Louis is still staring.

"I just love you." Louis half heartedly says, just to make Liam less pissy.

Liam rolls his eyes. "Shut up."

 

   They take the elevator down to the floor under the basement, where the rest of the teens of the house have already began, alongside Toby wearing big headphones, aiding Sam in a clear room, sectioned off in the corner at the moment. Toby spots Louis and Liam, exchanging an  _Excuse me_ , with Sam and walking up to them as he takes his headphones off.

"Where the hell were you two?" Toby asks.

Before either of them can respond, a voice interrupts. "Sucking each other off in the broom closet, probably."

"Enough, Harry. Go work on your temperate control." Toby says, waving him off.

"Please, Jack Frost." Louis comments as Harry walks away. "We have the decency to save that shit for the bedroom."

"Fuck off, Frier." Harry shouts back, flipping him off.

"Jealous bastard." Louis murmurs.

"Stop." Liam whispers, nudging him, then looking at Toby. "What am I doing today?"

"Simulation." Toby says, still glaring at Louis. "You'll go into the simulation chamber, I'll set up a scenario and we'll see if you've mastered how many duplicates of yourself you need and how well you can control them individually." As Liam nods and walks away, Toby puts an arm out to stop Louis from following. "You, on the other hand, already have your training temporarily removed."

"This is so fucking stupid." Louis argues, "How the hell am I supposed to learn?"

"You already know all you need to, it's your responsibility on how you handle it now. And from the looks of it, you can't behave yourself here or in the house. Don't give me that goddamn look, Tomlinson. You set your sheets on fire last week, and don't even get me started on your attitude towards Harry."

"First of all, if you had a hot boy grinding up on you I'm sure you'd get pretty heated too, pun intended. Second of all, Harry doesn't like me either yet he gets away with being a dick to me all the time."

"He doesn't, I promise you. Now, go be useful. Help Perrie and the others with their training."

   Louis mumbles an agreement, going to a closet and taking out a mamba pistol and walking to where the small, blonde stands in sweatpants and a t-shirt. She turns around, chewing on her lip as Louis approaches her.

"Toby isn't--"

"Hello, Miss Adamantium. And no," Louis answers for her. "He said I'm helping you today so, go on. Stand against the wall and try taking the gun."

   Perrie nods, used to the exercise. Louis aims the gun, shooting it and watching as the bullet spins in the air. As it makes it's way towards Perrie, her eyes lock on it. Silver coats her skin, starting from the leg and up, completely wrapping her in the reflective, metal substance, covering her face until the roots of her hair are shining in adamantium metal. The bullet hits her chest, crumbling at the impact and falling onto the floor, not even leaving a dent on her breast. She walks unharmed, closer as bullets continue hitting her and falling to the floor. As trained, she slides onto the floor, skin faded back to the normal paleness as she kicks Louis' ankle, sending him onto the floor and the gun skidding across the floor. Louis crawls to retrieve it, but is stopped by Perrie basically climbing on top of him, kicking his shoulder blade and knocking the air out of him. She picks up the gun, aiming it back at him with a smile.

"I'm getting good at this." Perrie says, handing the gun back to Louis.

"You don't give the gun back to the killer," scolds Toby from the intercom. "Louis, go with Niall."

"Niall doesn't even need proper fucking training," Louis groans, walking toward's Niall's section, which is basically a dark-transparent room. Louis opens the door and walks in, "Come out, come out wherever you are, you Irish fuck."

A flicker of light appears from the corner of the room in the shape of a hand, that lights up in a white glow. "I heard you out there."

"Don't get pissed, your— thing— is pretty cool."

This time, Niall's whole body lights up. Literally. His hair and arms and legs and torso are all replaced with the same white glow, his eyes a neon blue now.

"I'm a fucking light bulb."

"You say that everyday."

"The only perk is I don't break." Niall complains, "Or get hot."

"Are you shading me you fucking watt?"

Niall laughs, "Yeah, I am. How you doing, Lou?"

"I see you everyday," Louis says, leaning against the wall. "Same old, I'm bored. I'm not allowed to abuse any flames, I'm a danger."

"Do it in here," Niall urges. "C'mon, it's fucking cool."

"Still the same ten year old I know," Louis laughs. "Okay, fine."

     Niall's face ignites with a smile as Louis puts his hand behind his back, clutching it into a fist. He brings it held out in front of him now, only a foot from Niall as the inside of his hand glows orange. Slowly, he opens it so the flame dancing on his palm lightens the room alongside Niall. Blowing on the flame and sending it up his arm and to his shoulder. Louis sighs, putting it out so Niall's the only one still lighting the room.

"That's enough, Toby's gonna be pissed." Louis warns.

"Let him, he's just jealous you have a sick ass power."

"There's cooler ones." Louis shrugs.

"Let's see," Niall taps on his chin. "Me, light bulb. Not so spectacular."

"Correct term: Light Manipulation."

"Let me finish, I'm gonna go through everyone to make myself feel worse. Who else? Ah. Perrie. Would she count as skin manipulation?"

"She can turn her skin into fucking metal, what do you think?" Louis says.

" _You_ , fire manipulation. Fucking dope." Niall points out, "Liam, duplication. That's whatever, don't you think? Actually, you know you can have a threesome with him. Like, literally, _with_ him, one of him in the front one of him in the back--"

"Sam," Louis interrupts. "Sonic scream, see not that special either. What's he gonna do with that?"

"Shriek when getting killed." Niall suggests. "Jade has healing factor, she can't do much can she?"

"She can never die or get hurt," Louis shrugs. "Ed is invisibility, quite stereotypical, innit?"

"Harry is--"

"Blue balls, literally."

"Ice manipulation." Niall finishes. "That's cool." 

"It's boring." Louis argues. "Zayn's is my favourite. Shadow manipulation. Awesome."

"I never got the concept," Niall says.

"He can basically follow people around as their shadow and they won't even know. Hey, Zayn." 

Niall's shadow morphs into a body, standing behind him. "It's useful for being nosy." Zayn says, smirking. "I'll be with Liam."

With that, he disappears back into the darkness, leaving Niall and Louis.

"You know he loves Liam, right?" Niall mentions.

     Louis hums because, well, he knows. It was never really a surprise to him, or any of them for that matter. It was obvious, Zayn wasn't the type to interact with anyone except for Louis. Instead, he'd show affection through his power, following whoever he cared for as their shadow. That person being Liam. Louis didn't mind at all, it wasn't like him and Liam we're going to get _married_ or anything. It was a teen fling that he could feel coming to an end, he just wasn't sure if Liam felt it too.

"I'm almost done with him anyways."

"You're an ass," Niall comments.

"Yeah, well." Louis smiles, opening the door and heading out, "Someone's gotta be."

As Louis turns around, he notices Harry's focus on him, snapping back to the water being shot at him, turning them into icicles mid-air. "You should be working on your training."

"I've been suspended from training for another two days," Louis replies, turning three of the water shots into steam as he shoots flames at them just to piss Harry off. "Stop being nosy."

   As he goes to shoot another string of flames, Harry blocks them with a shivering gust of air pushed from between his lips.

"Go away."

"Don't be so bitchy."

"Don't be so difficult."

"You're one to fucking talk," mumbles Harry, taking off back upstairs before Louis can reply.

 

 

~~\---------~~

**I 18 & 16 I**

 

 

Toby sits still on the couch, staring at all the mutants. The silence eats the tension in the room as everyone stares at one another, curious as to what Toby called them down for.

"I'm leaving," Toby finally says. "Seven years, I'll be back after that. There's a thing I have to take care of, from now on no one, and I mean _no one_  leave the house. It's for your own good, not many people know that we exist."

     Everyone breaks into yelling and bitching, once again silenced by Toby. "Enough. Groceries will be delivered, money, clothes, everything is taken care of. I leave tomorrow morning, now go to bed."

"What's your reason?" Harry asks, crossing his arms, refusing to leave.

"I was called in for an assignment." Toby says, getting up, "Now go."

"This is ridiculous--"

"Give it a rest, Hardy." Louis snaps, pushing his shoulder as he walks past him. "He doesn't have a choice, just listen to him and go to fucking bed."

"What crawled up your arse?" Harry shoots back, "Not Liam's dick, that's what."

"Oh, you're nosy as well?" Louis snarls. "Stay out of my fucking relationships."

"It's not a relationship if you guys broke up, thank god, by the way. Poor Liam, having to deal with your ass all the time--"

   Louis breaks, pinning Harry to the wall and grabbing him by the throat, feeling his skin heating on top of Harry's cold skin. "I'm gonna repeat myself: stay out of my fucking relationships." Steam begins to form as Harry's temperature gets warmed and he squirms in pain at Louis' skin reaching boiling point.

     Liam wastes no time pushing Louis off of Harry. "Enough."

   Harry gets up, hand on his neck, freezing it to bring back his normal body temperature. Louis stares at him, ready to send another wave of flames towards him, but Liam knows him too well.

 "Don't you dare burn him again. Goddamn it, Louis. Behave yourself, Toby's not even gone and you're already trying to fucking kill Harry."

   Louis clenches his jaw; looking at Liam, then Harry, then back at Liam.

"I'm not saying you have to fall in love with him." Liam whispers, looking directly into Louis' eyes, "Just tolerate him."

   Louis nods at the difficult task, but knows that it's an impossible task. He'll get along with Harry when hell freezes over. 

~~**\----------------------** ~~

 

**I 23 & 21 Present Time I**

 

It's sunny outside. Like, there is sun for the first time in the history of England. Louis lays down alongside the pool, where the concrete is planted. The rest of the mutants are inside as usual, too fragile against the warm air to come outside.

"Hey, Satan." Well, all except for Perrie.

"Miss Adamantium." Louis hums, eyes closed and cheek pressed against the floor. "What brings you outside on this lovely day."

"Okay, just because you're immune to temperatures above hell doesn't mean the rest of us are." Perrie says, sitting next to him and putting her feet in the cool water. "And it's so dull in the house. No one's doing anythin'."

"No one?" Louis squints one eye open. "There's bound to be someone doing something."

Perrie shrugs. "Ed and Niall are pricking Jade with thumb tacks, 'n Sam is down in the basement with Harry and Liam."

"And Zayn?"

"Probably shadowin' Liam." Perrie looks down at Louis, "Not takin' a dip today, eh?"

"I'm waiting to boil the water." Louis hums. "Take a swim while you can cos in about thirty minutes I'm changing the temperature."

"That is so odd,"

"I've been doing it since I could--"

Perrie shakes her head, "No. The fact that you can only go in hot water. What happens if it's cold?"

"I wouldn't know, I've never taken the risk." Louis replies. "What happens when you're all adamantium-ed out and get hot?"

"Chafing." Perrie shoots back. "Alright, bub. I'm goin' back in the house. Call me if ye need anythin'."

   Louis hums a goodbye as Perrie gets up, brushing herself off and disappearing into the house. When he's positive no one else is going to want to go swimming, he sticks his arm in the pool, hissing at the coldness and letting his arm heat up, sending the heat of the water up until it boils. Then, soon after it's at a reasonable temperature for his body, he jumps in, splashing water left and right. He soaks in it until a voice calls.

"Liam said you should get inside." Louis doesn't even have to open his eyes to know who's talking.

 "Go back inside, Harrywinkle. You're gonna melt."

"I'm capable of handling my body temperature," Harry says, crossing his arms. "I can't believe he sent me out here--" He turns around, heading back inside, "Just get back inside, yeah?"

"Fine," Louis saves him the trouble, getting out and walking alongside of him. "What does he want?"

Harry shakes himself, a thing he does to re-frost when he begins to over heat. "Toby called and said to make sure you stay inside. The neighbours tend to eavesdrop."

"Fuck that," Louis mumbles, stepping into the house.

"Don't get pissed at me, Hades." Harry snaps, "You think I like being stuck in this fucking house too? Or any of us, for that matter? Stop complaining and deal with it."

"What the fuck is up with you? Blue balls coming on again?"

"Shut the fuck up," Harry pushes past Louis, leaving him in the kitchen.

"Fighting again?" Zayn interrupts from the stairs. "Then again, when aren't you?"

"Listen I've been trying to be fucking civil for past four years, he'll go from being a good lad to a fucking prick. I don't get him."

"Maybe he's in love with you." Zayn teases.

"That'd be worse than him hating me," Louis laughs, lightly punching the other man's shoulder. "I'll be in my room."

   Louis doesn't know what's worse, staying in the house and doing nothing or being stuck in his room with only his powers to entertain him. Flames trickle up his arms and chest, then up his neck and enveloping his face. When someone jiggles the doorknob, he puts himself out, laying on his bed as if nothing had happened.

"I smelled smoke," Jade says, raising an eyebrow up at Louis. "Dinner's ready, Sam made hamburgers."

   Louis nods, getting up and following the smaller girl down the stairs where everyone sits scattered around. Some at the table, some at the small island in the middle of the kitchen, and some on the couch. Louis take a seat next to Ed on the sofa, flipping through the channel before putting Avengers on.

"Turn that shit off," Ed says.

"Why?"

"It's ridiculous," Ed says. "It's all bullshit. And it's giving me a headache, now off with it."

"So sensitive, it's just a film--"

"Yeah, but it feeds adolescents false information." Harry interrupts. "We're nothing like that, hell. We're not accepted like them, we're not treated like them, and we sure as hell don't act like them."

"Yeh," Jade pipes in. "It's quite hypocritical that our parents idolised Superman and whatnot, but kicked half of us out when they found out we weren't normal."        

"Yeah, exactly." Harry says, "So turn it off."

"Overanalysing everything." Louis mumbles, switching the television off.

"Shut the fuck up." Harry snaps.

"Goddamn it, what's your problem now?" Louis groans, looking at Harry who is death gripping his cup and freezing the liquid in it.

"Nothing. Fucking nothing." Harry whispers, throwing his cup on the floor, shattering it and leaving upstairs.

"Now look what you've done." Perrie says, pointing to the broken glass pieces. "Waste of a good cup, Louis pick it up."

"But--"

"You pissed him off."

   Louis doesn't reply, because frankly there is no point in arguing when it comes to Harry. No matter what he does, Harry finds a way to get mad at him for it and cause an unnecessary argument. Of course, Louis is also guilty when it comes to pushing the other man's buttons. Truth is, Louis and Harry would probably get along if it wasn't for whatever made them so annoyed towards one another's presence. Regardless, Louis shuts up and picks up the glass on the floor. For the rest of the night, things are tense. They've been like this for a while now. Well, ever since Toby left. The mutants have no idea what they are supposed to do or how they're  supposed to act; they know one thing: don't leave the house. And they never leave the house, everyone except for Louis seems to be fine with this. Even now, they don't complain, they just  _deal_ with it.

   Louis sits in his room with Zayn, passing back and forth a joint Zayn managed to snatch from the neighbours two houses down. Louis snaps his fingers, creating a small lighter-like flame and lighting up the rolled weed.

"How many more do you have?" Louis breathes the smoke out, rubbing his hands over his face and fixing his hair that's tousled underneath the hood of his hoodie.

"Three." Zayn mumbles, joint between his lips. "We share this one today, the second one tomorrow. Then we get one each."

"Niiice." Louis sits up, eyes opened wide as he watches one of the hidden butts float out of a drawer. "I'm fucking tripping, they must've laced some shit in that--"

"Ed, put it down." Zayn says.

"Damn," Ed becomes visible, "next time get me some, yeah? Or let me go with you, it'll be easier for me to sneak around."

"'s a good idea." Louis says. "And I could go with you both."

"No, you're useless."

"Alright Ed, get outta here." Zayn laughs, "I'll get you some next time."

   Ed waves his hand, leaving Louis and Zayn back to their usual habit. Soon, a window has to be cracked opened because of the hazy air. "I'm gonna sleep," Louis mumbles, throwing his arm over his face and fully laying down. "Goodnight."

   It doesn't take long for him to be knocked out, leaving Zayn to do his own thing. Before he can process anything, it's morning and he's being woken up by the sun. Louis gets up , heading to the bathroom to wash off the odour and sweat stuck to his skin. He strips down, waiting until the water reaches boiling temperature, then gets in. The steam soon takes over the restroom, signalling him to get out. With only a towel around his waist, he steps out of the bathroom with his skin still glistening from the water.

   As he turns the hallway corner to go to his room, he's knocked back by another body that crushes his chest as he lands on the floor. Looking up, he sees Harry looking back down at him. The silence between the collision and the two just eyeing each other is enough to fluster Louis, warming his skin. This of course causes Harry to hiss in pain, getting off of him. Harry examines his collarbone, red from where it was pressed against Louis' chest. He puts his hand over the burn, freezing it back to his normal temperature.

"Sorry," Louis says, getting up. "I didn't mean to--"

"Yeah well you're never gonna mean to but it's gonna happen anyways." Harry grumbles. "Might as well just stay the fuck away from me."

   Before Louis can reply back with a snippy insult, Harry's already shoving past him and down the stairs. He stands there still shocked at the outbreak the other man had once again. Things are only good for so long.

     

  Downstairs, everyone is already eating breakfast, chatting away as the TV plays in the background. Arriving downstairs, Louis grabs a bowl, filling it with cereal and leaning against the counter. For a moment it's silent, and Louis' jaw twitches as he goes to speak something he knows the others will brush off.

"We should break out." Everyone replies with murmurs of agreements. "No," Louis puts the bowl down. "Not necessarily break out— just, I don't know, get out of here."

"And how would that work?" Sam questions from the living room. "Toby would know—"

"But how?" Louis says. "We could just go out. Get a job, go to Uni. Be normal."

"We're anything _but_  normal." Harry interrupts, rolling his eyes.

"Duh. But that doesn't mean we can't mask it."

"I'm in." Zayn pipes in. "Anything to get out of this damn chamber, before I go clinically mental."

Jade chews on her lip, speaking up as well and nodding at Perrie. "Pez and I are in. It's getting boring counting tiles. There's 213 upstairs."

"I'll go if Sam goes." Ed says shrugging. "It wouldn't hurt, would it? The only uni's around are down in Manchester or London, but I'd still like to see what they're about."

Louis looks at Liam. "And you?"

Liam sighs, running his hand through his hair. "Yeah, I'm in."

Louis let's out a clap. "That's settled then—"

"It's gonna be dangerous." Harry says this time.

 "Yeah, thanks for the insight, Elsa." Louis says, crossing his arms.

"Stop calling me that, fire crotch." Harry shoots back.

"You can't just tell me to stop insulting you with an insult, Frosty."

"I can't fucking work with him." Harry snaps, pointing at Louis. "I'll fucking stay if he doesn't get his shit together."

"You act like that makes me oh so gloomy."

"Enough!" Liam yells between them, "For fucks sake, you're driving me mental--"

"Weren't saying that when you were half way down my thro--"

"Louis," Jade scolds. " _And_ Harry. You boys 'av been at each other's throats since ye first met. Stop it, would ye?"

"When he stops being an asshole, I'll consider it." Harry says, pushing off the counter and walking upstairs.

"Fix it," Liam says, pushing Louis towards the stairs. "Fix something properly in your goddamn life."

"Don't tell me you're still pressed about--" Louis' assumption is answered when Liam crossed his arms, refusing eye contact with him. "Li-- are you kidding me? It's been three fucking _years,_  get over it."

"That's easy for you to say," Liam says, pushing Louis as he walks past him. "You know, some people actually feel shit. Just because you don't doesn't mean you can go around pleasing yourself. Go apologise for being a fucking dick. Get over yourself."

     Louis shuts his mouth, deciding that it's best not to argue with Liam now that he's already angry. Defeated, he heads back upstairs, knocking on Harry's bedroom door.

"I'm sorry." Louis says, "I was a dick. To be quite fair you were a dick as well so I shouldn't be the one apologising—"

"Shut the fuck up and I'll go." Harry replies.

"I'm tempted to keep talking so you'll stay. However, I'll decide against it since it'll probably bum the others out and they'll hate me. Fair enough, with that."

Harry stays in the room, Louis decides that it's best to fully leave him alone and goes downstairs to speak with the others about the plan.

"So we're really doing this?" Jade asks. "I thought we were bluffing like always."

"I don't see a reason not to," Louis says, "We're not idiots. We've been taught to control our powers."

"You've got a point there."

"When?" Liam interrupts. "Like, are we leaving the house or--"

"No," Louis shakes his head. "Well, not for the registration part. We just need to pull a few strings and get our hands on some applications."

"What about housing?" Jade asks, receiving another chorus of mumbles.

"We can rent some flats," Sam says, "one for the girls and three for the lads. We've got enough money saved from Toby and the donations from the Mutants Foundation."

"And we'll get jobs to pay for the rent." Perrie chimes in. "There's a lot of small shops."

Jade squeals and claps her hands. "Oh, I'm gettin' excited just thinking about it. We're really going through with it, yeah?"

"I'm doing it." Louis shrugs. "Who else?"

"I'm in." Jade says. "Most definitely."

 "If Jade's in, then me too." Perrie chimes in.

"Anything to get out of here, I'm suffocating." Ed replies.

Zayn gives an agreeing hum.

"I'm in." Sam says as well as Niall.

"Fine. I'll go just to make sure nothing goes wrong." Liam says.

     Everyone looks at Harry who still hasn't said a word, standing against the staircase with his arms crossed.

"Come off it." Jade gently says, "Live your life, do things. Take risks. This could be the best thing that's ever happened to ya." Harry pinches the bridge of his nose with his fingers and sighs.

     "Yeah. Okay. I'm in." 

 

~~**\-------------------** ~~

 

  Perrie and Ed print out applications to three of the closest universities, handing three of each to everyone as they sit around the living room, some on the couch and some on the floor. Jade soon comes down with all their birth certificates and other small files that were stashed in the attic when they were brought to the house. 

"July 10th." Perrie says, lying across one of the couches. "Toby told me my birthday was June 10th."

"I've filled out these two," Sam says, waving two papers around. 

"We count as home schooling, right? Where are our test scores and whatnot?" Jade asks, furrowing her eyebrows.

 Liam digs through one of the boxed and pulls out nine files and hands one to Jade. "Here are yours. Perrie, here. Zayn's. Mine..."

  When they've all filled them out, they sent Ed to take them to get mailed. When he gets back, it's painfully silent in the room.

"We did it." Louis says. "Huh. I'd thought I'd feel more at ease."

 "And we still have to wait like two months for the fucking results." Zayn groans.

"What do we do in the meantime?" Liam asks.

Niall shrugs. "Why don't we go try renting some flats? All the uni's we applied to are close to each other. We can go this weekend and look for jobs and whatnot."

"Yeah, that's a good idea." Liam says. 

"All I can think about right now is sleeping." Ed says, "It's already midnight. Night guys."

   Everyone agrees, heading upstairs to sleep the exhaustion and excitement off. Well, except for Louis. He stays awake in his bed, staring at the ceiling and letting his thoughts take over. A uni life sounds ideal and better than becoming stuck in the house and not seeing the world. He knows why they're here; mutants aren't accepted. Or well known, the few who  _are_ aware of their existence are the ones who had the unfortunate of having a mutant as a child, or those higher authorities who want to experiment on them in hopes of finding what can stop causing the mutations. Statistically, 1 in every 800,000 children ends up being a mutant, meaning it's an extremely slim chance to be a parent of a mutant. Obviously, those in the house were the unlucky minority that got stuck with the gene. If they went anywhere near mortals and were caught, they would be dead or fucked. It's beyond risky, and Louis is starting to list all the cons that are possible. Getting nauseated, he gets up and heads downstairs to watch TV and get his shit together. Zayn, who is sitting on his useless bed across the room from Louis, looks up from his laptop and takes his headphones off.

"Where you going?" 

"I'm gonna watch TV and try getting my mind off of things." Louis says, "Just go back to your movie."

Zayn just nods, letting Louis go without questioning him.

   Louis goes down the stairs as quietly as possible, not wanting to wake anyone up. When he gets downstairs, he notices the TV already on. Considering Zayn is still upstairs and everyone else is asleep, his heart stops.  _Toby?_ No, thats impossible. He's not supposed to be back for another two years. Suspense gets heavier as Louis turns the corner, peaking over the couch. 

"What the hell are you doing?" Harry asks, causing Louis to jump and clutch his chest.

"What the hell are  _you_ doing? Why are you awake?" Louis questions back.

"I just can't sleep. Is that an issue?" 

"No. I can't either, I just wanted to watch TV."

     It's obvious that Harry clenches his jaw, but regardless he cocks an eyebrow and looks at the seat at the other end of the couch. "Sit. I'm watching Friends and I'm not gonna change it so piss off."

"Good thing I genuinely like the show, then." Louis says back as nicely as he can because starting an argument with Harry at two in the morning isn't going to help his stress.

   It's at least a good hour of silence and quick glances towards one another before one of them says something.

"Stop looking at me--"

"Are you okay--"

Louis furrows his eyebrows. "You kept looking at me too."

"Yeah because you were looking at me first," snaps Harry.

"Cos you were fucking  _staring_ at me for five minutes straight."

"I was trying to figure out why you hadn't left yet."

"This happens to be my favourite episode." Louis says, smiling tightly just to piss the other man off.

Harry rolls his eyes.

"You know, I noticed you didn't say anything about the plan. You know, getting flats and whatnot."

"And?"

"Are you scared?"

Harry sits up straight this time. "No, I just don't like the fucking idea. And I don't wanna just stay in the house and be a buzzkill."

He starts to get up, but before he's already gone, Louis says, "If it helps, I'm scared shitless too."

Harry doesn't reply.  

 

~~\--------------------------~~

 

   Louis and Harry don't talk for the rest of the week until the weekend comes. They all wait downstairs for the remaining mutants to get downstairs.

"Who's driving?" Perrie asks, "And who am I riding with?"

"Liam and I are the only ones with licenses," Louis says. "So I call the BMW 5 Toby left, Liam you can take the Lexus IS."

"I'm going with Louis then." Perrie says.

 "Yeah me too." Jade replies.

"I call shotgun with Liam." Zayn says, nudging Liam.

"I'll go with Louis." Ed says. "Harry and Sam, you go with Liam. Niall, go with Louis." 

"Let's hit the road, lads." Niall says. "Harry! Hurry up!"

Harry runs down the stairs. "I'm going with Liam--"

"Yeah, we discussed it, Curly."

     Harry tenses up at the nickname, but nods regardless and follows them outside and into their assigned driver. Liam takes the lead considering he's better at directions than Louis. It's an hour and a half drive from the countryside to the city, and it's spent with Jade and Perrie testing their pain tolerance, Jade obviously winning.

"Perrie, stop adamantiuming." Louis says when she begins to coat her body in the metal substance to entertain those in the back seat. "It's making the light reflect and I'm gonna crash."

     Perrie un-suits, staring at her palms and mumbling a  _Sorry_.

   After another twenty minutes of silence, Niall begins to snicker as well as the two girls. "Hey, Lou. Look."

"What?" Louis glances in the rearview mirror watching as Niall pulls himself together.

"I've got an-- idea!" When the last word leaves his lips, his head glows bright, and white.

   Perrie and Jade burst into uncontrollable laughter, and Louis feels like pulling over and leaving them on the side of the rode to fend for themselves. Well, all except Ed because he's peacefully asleep in the passenger seat. 

"Aye-" Jade says between her sharp breaths of laughter. "Niall's the brightest crayon in the box, isn't he?"

   Perrie and Niall, again, find this pun hysterical as it leaves them wheezing and trying to catch their breaths. Luckily, they're only three miles from the apartments and Louis manages to hold himself together for the remainder of the ride.

   Liam parks first, leaving Louis to park two cars away from him. They exit the car and meet by Liam's car, calling the flat landlord to make sure they're on time.

"Yes. We're in the parking lot- absolutely. Yes. Thank you, we'll be there right now. Yes ma'am it's all nine of us. Okay. Bye." Liam hangs up his phone and points to the building. "Mrs. Reese is waiting inside to show us a few flats."

"Alright, let's go then." Ed says, walking first into the building and having the others follow.

Inside, an old woman awaits, smiling at them once they walk in. "I just got off the phone with one of you, am I correct?"

"Yes," Liam confirms, shaking her hand politely. "I'm Liam. Down the line it's Sam, Louis, Perrie, Jade, Harry, Ed, Niall, and Zayn."

"Big family." Mrs. Reese comments.

"We're all just close childhood friends." Jade says, "We basically grew up together."

"Very lovely." Mrs. Reese smiles, "Well, we don't have an elevator just yet but if you'll follow me up the stairs I'll lead you to the four flats we have available. They're on the same floor, but two are separated by an already taken flat."

"That's alright." Liam says, lead the way. 

   The flats are on the third floor, the D section. Mrs. Reese shows them the available ones, all two bedroom with one bathroom and a kitchen, as well as a good sized living room. Once they've seen them all, it's pretty clear they won't find any other flats as nice and cheap as those.

"I'll get your papers to fill out." Mrs. Reese says. "Bring them back in the next two days and we'll be able to officially have you as residents anywhere from three to five weeks from now, if that's alright?"

"Yes, perfect." Jade assures her. "Thank you so much, see you soon!"

 

   When they get home, they begin filling out the sheets immediately while Jade and Perrie look for antique furniture they can bring to their new houses.

"Whoa," Niall says, coming downstairs and getting everyones's attention. "Who's living with who? Cos I don't wanna show up there and get confused.

"Me and Jade are in a flat together, no questions asked." Perrie demands.

"Yeah, that's fine." Zayn says. "What about us lads? Two of the flats are gonna have only two guys in it, ones gonna have three."

"I call Ed." Louis and Harry say at the same time.

"No." Louis snaps looking at Harry. "I've been roomies with Ed since we were five. It's staying that way."

"Excuse your fucking ass, but I think I should room with Ed because I've been rooming with the same lads for more than ten years," Harry yells back. "No offense to them, but shit gets boring."

"I don't give a fuck, I'm rooming with him,  _settled_ \--"

"You know not everything is gonna go the way you fucking want it to--"

"Oh shut the hell up, Harrywinkle, go cry somewhere else--"

"Enough!" Jade angrily shouts, becoming irritated at the bickering that was released due to a simple question. She stomps around the room, opening a drawer and pulling a piece of blank paper out and tearing it into seven pieces. Everyone watches as she mutters incoherent words under her breath and snatches a pen from Sam's hand, jotting words down on each of the papers. They stay quiet as she stomps up the stairs as well, coming back down with a fedora filled with the papers. She shoves the hat towards Liam. "Pick. One."

Liam hesitantly grabs a paper and opens it, reading, "Zayn."

Jade points to a spot behind her. "Stand there," she moves along to Zayn. "Take one."

Zayn pulls out a slip. "Ed."

"You two go stand with Liam. That's the flat of three." Jade sticks her hand into the hat, taking out Liam and Ed's names and moving to Harry.

Harry rolls his eyes, grabbing a paper with no emotion, then opening it. His expression changes as his eyebrows furrow and his lips turn into a frown. "I'm switching--"

"No." Jade growls. "You get who you get. Who is it?"

"This is bullshit." Harry says, letting out a harsh laugh. "I'm not fucking rooming with him."

Jade snatches the paper from him and reads it out loud. "Louis. You're rooming with Louis. And I will not hear you complain, so help me god if I do I will melt you into a puddle. As for  _you,"_ she points at Louis. "You will be civil and you will not try changing rooms or anything. Consider this a lesson; next time don't argue for useless shit, you fucking twats."

"So I'm rooming with Sam?" Niall asks. "Nice. We should make our flat a bro cave!"

   Louis clenches his fists, feeling his skin begin to heat. Liam notices, getting up and trying to put his hands on Louis' shoulders, but pulling his hands away once flames start to lick at Louis' arm. Instead of taking his anger out on the curly headed walking snowman, he turns around, letting out an aggravated scream and punching the wall. An overdramatic gesture that assures the rest of the mutants that he is very much pissed at Jade's decision. The hole on the wall flickers with flames for a moment before dimming down to only a few embers. Louis takes a deep breath, putting out his flames quickly and opening his eyes, to see Harry staring at him with pink cheeks and wide eyes with his lips parted slightly. When he notices Louis staring at him as well, he goes upstairs without another word.

"What. The. Fuck." Liam looks at the hole and shakes with anger as he yells at Louis. "What the hell is wrong with you? Why the fuck was it necessary to  _burn_ a fucking whole the size of a comet in the goddamn wall?"

"That was dope." Ed says

"Do not encourage him!" Liam yelps. "Oh my god, who is gonna fix this. . ."

   Louis ignores Liam's comments about the destruction he had caused, walking straight past everyone. The backyard is the only place that is secluded and private, considering it's pretty big. Not only does it have the pool, but over the tall hedges behind it, there's a garden that Toby had put in due to nine year old Perrie's request. It's completed with roses, lilies, pansies, morning glories; basically every flower little Perrie and Jade had searched and Toby was able to get his hands on. A wall fountain and a cascading fountain are placed in the end and middle of the garden. A small pond sits beneath the wall fountain with small fish in it as well as a turtle that Niall named Tortoise. There's also many trees, one in the middle of the large patch of grass on the side of the cobblestone path, and several others near the pond. The brick walls surrounding it are coated in ivy; thick and green with dew drops falling from each vine. It's honestly the prettiest thing Louis has seen in his life.

   Whenever he feels like he might commit a murder, he lingers in that particular spot in the garden, sitting on the grass and trying to get his shit together. He knows it destroys the beauty of the location, but he pulls out a cigarette placed behind his ear earlier; he snaps his fingers, lighting it with the small-flickering fame and inhales in hopes that maybe it'll kill him. Anything to not room with Harry. It's not that he has a problem with Harry, it's that Harry has a problem with  _him._ That only results Louis to develop a problem with Harry. It doesn't make sense at all; Louis can still remember the night Harry was brought into the house, but he doesn't remember the problem starting there, because, well, they were cool with each other. Mostly because they had just become acquainted, but still.

   Harry didn't start showing bitterness towards Louis until he barely turned eleven; two years of being in the house. They weren't relatively close before, but they weren't that vicious towards one another either. They mostly kept out of one another's way. Louis can remember this: thirteen was the age where Liam and his relationship began to develop; Perrie wanted nothing more than mascara; Ed figured out how to play guitar; Jade turned into the motherly figure despite her age; Zayn and Sam wold duet together for about three months; Niall finally got Fifa; and Harry threw his first bitch fit at Louis.

   He and Liam had laying in Louis' bed, reading the bullshit comics about how amazing superheroes were supposed to be and whatnot. . .

 

**I 13 & 11 I**

 

"What I would do to be Batman," Liam says, closing his comic and sitting up. "Mysterious with a lot of money. It's the dream."

"You don't have to be Batman, just be Liam." Louis replies, looking over his book and smiling at Liam. "That's good enough.

   Liam smiles, that smile that only Louis could bring on his face. A smile reserved just for Louis, and he loved that. His early teen mind even knew how to easily charm someone so much that they'd become wrapped up in him. For now, Liam was just a test to see if this  _liking boys_  thing was as legit as he felt. He had to admit, he'd imagine kissing Liam once or twice. Sometimes even Zayn. Then again, his hormones were all over the place and he really had no control over what his mind wondered off to.

Louis sits up this time, scooting closer to Liam and putting his hands on his knees. "Don't think about being as good as someone who isn't even real. I gotta admit, I like this Liam a lot more than I like Batman."

"Yeah?" The blush on Liam's cheeks brings smugness to Louis' heart.

"Yeah."

It happens so fast that Louis doesn't even know it's happened until it's over. Liam quickly leans forward, pressing a kiss to Louis' lips and pulling away in a nimble motion. His cheeks become tinted with more pink as he stammers an excuse.

"I-I'm sorry I didn't mean to--"

Louis rolls his eyes, taking Liam's face in both his hands and kissing him again, holding his head in place so he can properly see if he feels anything. It's no fireworks or anything, some butterflies flutter but not much of a feeling other than damp lips and warmth. Louis pulls away and a cough breaks the moment.

Young Harry stands in the doorway, mouth gaped opened making things so much more awkward.

"Lou was just helping me-- uh-- try out some chapstick?" Liam tries to explain, failing at dishonesty.

"Nah, I was kissing him. Listen, Harry, don't tell anyone in the house."

Harry continues to stare at them with his eyebrows creased. "It's not my job to keep your dirty little secret," he ends up snapping. "And don't talk to me like I'm five, Louis. You act like I'm a freakin' idiot."

Before Louis can reply, Harry stomps away.

"He seemed upset." Louis says, looking at a dazed Liam.

"We kissed." Liam says. "That was my first kiss."

"Good." Louis says. "Now you won't regret it."

 

**I Present Time (23 & 21) I**

 

Four tense weeks pass after the whole  _I Hate Him and No Way In Hell Are We Gonna Room Together-- To Emphasize My Point Let Me Punch This Wall_ ordeal, and no one's forgot about it but everyone acts like they have. As far as they're concerned, they've only got packing to worry about. Louis' stuff is- for the most part- already packed considering he doesn't have much belongings that he's willing to take. The room looks so empty, it's sort of sad, but he's been stuck in there too long to feel a hint of anguish towards it or the house.

"Oi," Ed calls, snapping Louis out of his thoughts. "The box truck is here and you're obligated to help me get all our shit in there. Plus Jade and Perrie's, cos they're hauling the furniture in the other box truck."

"Yeah, okay." Louis says, picking up a stack of boxes and following Ed downstairs.

   As he's loading the boxes into the car, he catches Harry looking over at him. However, once Harry sees, he heads back inside without another word. Before Louis has a chance to feel shitty for himself, he hears Perrie grunt and turns to see her pushing a vanity set into the back of the box truck.

"Easy there, little adamantium." Louis says, hopping in the back and grabbing the ends of the vanity. "You'll hurt yourself, here let me pull it--"

Perrie lets go, putting her hands on her hips and cocking her eyebrow. "I'm a woman, not a delicate China doll. I've already moved three couches, four mattresses, and about two other wardrobes in the first box truck Liam just left with. Do not sit there and try helping me, I'm doing  _fine_."

Louis holds up his hands, "Sorry, I just wanted to help."

"Next time don't sound sexist." Zayn comments as he walks past with boxes in hand.

   Figuring he's not gonna be a help outside, Louis opts to move the kitchen stuff into the trucks instead of sitting and doing nothing. As he walks inside, Harry comes downstairs with (of course) boxes. Once he reaches the second to last step, he loses balance; falling hard on his ass and watching as the boxes tumble down the last two steps.

"Shit." Harry hisses, getting up and rubbing at his bum.

Louis hesitates, finally coming to the conclusion that it costs nothing to be nice. He grabs a box that fell out of Harry's grasp, picking it up and offering Harry a light smile.

"I can handle it myself." Harry snaps, grabbing the remaining boxes still on the ground.

"I know." Louis says shrugging. "But, we're gonna be roommates in less than twenty-four hours. And you may hate me, and I may not be that fond of your snippiness towards me, but I'm not a total dick."

"What do you want?" Harry asks, staring at Louis as if he's gone cold.

"God--  _nothing_. Jesus fucking Christ, I just wanna be civil. That's it. There's nothing more I want than to punch you, but I'm doing something called suppressing that feeling." Louis realises his words were a bit harsh, and comes back with, "Sorry, I'm just in a bad mood--"

"We may be fucking roommates but the minute you lay a hand on me you're  _done._ " Harry interrupts, gritting his teeth and pushing past Louis, but failing when Louis manages to grab his arm roughly.

"Are you gonna ambush me with your snowflakes?" Louis snaps back. "I fucking dare you. I'll burn a hole right through that frozen heart,  _try_ me. I'm not playing nice if you won't." This time, Louis pushes past Harry and doesn't give him a second look.

 

**~~\----------------------~~ **

 

   Louis is the first to arrive at the new flats. Well, him and everyone who managed to fit inside his car; i.e: Perrie, Jade, Sam, and Ed. Jade gets out of the car, grabbing an extra bag out the truck and calling at Louis.

"Liam said he put your boxes in your flats, the unpacking is your job." Jade points at the others, "That goes for all. Bless Liam's soul and thank him when he comes back, you hear?"

"Yeah, bless Saint Liam, but who has our keys?" Louis says, following Jade into the building and up the flight of stairs.

"I've got mine and Jade's!" Perrie calls from the bottom.

"I've got mine and Niall's." Sam says, "And I think Ed might have yours--"

"I just checked." Ed calls out, already several steps ahead. "I only have the key for mine."

"Shit." Louis hisses, because not only does he have to  _room_ with Harry, now he has to  _wait_ until he gets here to even get in.

   Jade just shrugs her shoulder, claiming that she doesn't think he can wait in anyone's flat either because they have unpacking to do and that will take all day. He's almost positive she's just saying that so Louis and Harry will be forced to interact without being angry, although the encounter is most likely going to end in a raging argument. So, because he has nothing else to fucking do, he sits outside his flat door like a creep, playing Temple Run on his phone. He doesn't know how long he's been cursing and mumbling at his phone screen, but he hears the sound of Liam's voice and nothing's ever sounded so beautiful.

"Liam!" Louis calls, hugging him once he fully gets up the stairs. "I've been so alone."

"Are you trying to tell me--" 

"I forgot my key and was locked out, thank you for driving Hardy. Where is he?"

"Oh." Liam says, pushing Louis off of him. "He's getting one of his little boxes out the car with Zayn and Niall. I gotta go get some shit unpacked so Ed doesn't do it all, see you in a bit." With that, Liam heads to his apartment.

   Louis rolls his eyes, leaning against the door and intensely staring at the end of the stairs; in hopes that the curly haired bastard will be making his way up them. Luckily, his staring works as he sees the familiar face pop up, his eyebrows creasing as he sees that Louis is hopelessly staring at him.

"You haven't started unpacking?" Harry nearly growls.

"It's kind of hard to when you took the key." Louis explains. "Now open it please?"

Harry presses his lips together, setting the small box down and digging through his jeans until he finds the key. When it's opened, Harry rushes in before Louis can even peek. It's a clutter, like proper mess. Their boxed are stacked on top of the sofa Perrie purchased for them at a thrift shop, along with a majority of the furniture in their flat and the others. Two queen sized mattresses are stacked on one another in front of the kitchen with more boxes on top.

"I call this room right here." Harry says, pointing to the room down the small, two by two hallway next to the kitchen. 

Louis turns to look at the room he's gotten stuck with, which is on the other side of the living room with no hallway, just a door on the wall. It hasn't even been a full ten minutes of rooming with one of the people he hates most and it's already awkward and horrible. 

 

**~~\------------------~~ **

  The first couple mornings aren't awkward. On the third day of the second week that they've lived there, things start getting awkward. Considering they practically unpacked everything of their own, the flat is pretty much complete. Louis even managed to get his bed inside his room and unpack some clothes. But back to the life of living with the enemy.

   Harry is the first one to wake up, Louis knows this because when he finally wakes up, forgetting (again) who he now lives with, walks in with nothing but black boxer briefs. That wouldn't be a problem because Louis is actually quite comfortable with this body, but Frosty on the other hand seemed to have a rule against confidence.

"Can you--" Harry coughs, not taking his eyes off the TV. "Can you put some clothes on or something?"

Louis walks past him and into the kitchen, suddenly glad that he packed cereal but pissed they have no milk. "Calm down, I'm gonna shower right now and get dressed and be out of your way."

"I-- I don't  _care_ just put clothes on  _please."_ Harry practically seems to choke out.

   Louis stares at him because 1.) He's choking on his words out of anger. 2.) It hasn't even been three minutes into the morning, and 3.) He begged. It's all to much.

 

   The bathroom is all steamy by the time Louis gets out, considering the water wasn't hot enough for him to peacefully clean himself. When he gets out, Harry's in the kitchen putting groceries away. Louis' about to point out that the freezer doesn't work yet, but the words fail to leave his lips as he watches Harry come up with a solution. He grabs the ice cream, freezing it instantly in his palms to the point here ice bits form on the side. He continues like this, humming and opening the milk and pursing his lips and blowing a gust of white, cold air into it. It's an odd sight, because Louis' has never seen Harry casually use his powers; he only used them during training or to freeze water bottles when Niall asked him to. Instead of standing there watching him like a creep, Louis walks into the living room, causing Harry to jump a little.

"Where'd we get groceries from?" Louis asks, turning Netflix on and browsing through the movies.

"Liam sent like three of his duplicates to pick them up from three different Tescos around here." Harry says.

   Before Louis can continue the conversation, Perrie barges in, holding a thick stack of envelopes.

"Our uni letters came in!" She yells, "We're opening them in mine and Jade's-- come _on_."

   They have no choice but to follow Perrie, watching as she knocks on Liam's door (two doors down) then on Sam and Niall's right across. Everyone scatters themselves around Jade and Perrie's couch and the rest of the living room, eagerly hollering at them.

"Give us the goddamn envelopes, will you?" Niall pushes, trying to take them from Perrie but failing as she smacks him.

"Wait," Perrie says, sorting through the stack. "These three go to Sam. . ."

   Once they all have theirs, it's discussed that they'd open Metropolitian, then the Manchester College, then University.

"I got into Metropilitian!" Jade squeals, "And you lot?"

"Nope." Perrie says, shoulders sagging.

"I didn't either," Sam says, shugging it off.

"I did." Louis and Liam say at the same time.

"Nah." Ed laughs. "No for me."

"Me too- I got in." Harry says.

"Me as well." Niall comments along Zayn who also got in. "What's next?"

   Once they've opened the college one and share their results, it seems as everyone got in.

"We still need to try Man U." Liam says."Lets not get too excited."

"I got in!" Louis cheers, then calms down. "Sorry. Carry on with the rest of yours."

"I'm in."

"I'm in."

"Me too!"

"Happy days for me."

"And me as well."

"Fuck-- just kidding I'm in."

"Nice, me too."

Perrie hesitates before opening hers. "I don't want ruin it." She whines.

"Just open it." Beckons Zayn.

She takes a deep breath, holding the envelope to her chest and slowly opening it, skimming through the words.

"So?" Harry asks for everyone.

It seems like an eternity before she smiles and holds up the paper, "I'm fuckin' in!" 

   The silence in the room is filled with whoops and hollers, as if they already decided that they were going to attend Manchester University.

"Manchester is so mainstream." Jade says once they've all calmed down. "It feels like even in alternate universes we end up going there."

"Jade the hipster." Perrie laughs, pinching Jade's cheek. "Calm down, will ya love? We're just going for the hell of it."

"Says right here classes start in late August. It's what? Mid-July? We've got time." Liam says. "We should go out and celebrate!"

   No one in the room except for Ed, Niall, and Louis seem to like the idea. It's not that they're not excited, it's just that the last time they all "celebrated" something as a group, nothing went right. The first problem was they were stuck in the house because none of them were brave enough to leave. The second problem was they all got drunk off of cheap wine coolers and since that was the first of the time most of them drank, it was beyond a mess. Jade vomited on the stairs, causing Sam to slip (letting out one of his sonic screams, which again, was not good considering it shattered the downstairs windows) and nearly break his back. Liam ended up drunkly confessing his love for Louis, although they had been broken up for a while. Zayn ended up an emotional wreck, shadowing the corner of the living room for nearly five hours. Louis ended up accidentally burning some curtains due to Niall who continued to pressure him to do some "cool tricks" with his flames. Harry and Ed slurred along to old tunes by Frank Sinatra, while spilling wine all over the couch cushions. And Perrie? Well Perrie was nowhere to be seen the entire night. 

"I'd rather just stay in tonight." Jade says. "Now, get out of our flat."

   The boys get out, standing in the hallway until a plan is made.

"So only Louis, Ed, and Niall wanna go?" Liam asks. "Are you guys sure--"

"I'd rather not see what happens the second time you guys get wasted." Zayn mumbles heading back to his flat. "You guys have fun though."

"I'm not in the mood." Harry says, waving them off and opening the door to his flat. "Bring me back food if you can, though."

"Same with me." Sam says. "Have fun lads."

   Liam shrugs, turning back to the three willing to go. "Let's get two cabs, then."

 

**~~\-----------------------------~~ **

 

  The thing with Louis is that he knows he's drunk right now. He is absolutely fucked up. Like, the hang over he knows he's gonna get tomorrow is already mocking him. Luckily (and unluckily) enough, no matter how drunk he gets, he's very aware of everything going on around him. And chances are, he'll wake up recalling 98% of the night before. Right now, Liam's hauled him out of the cab, seeing as Louis can walk perfectly fine, but he doesn't feel like it. Once Liam's got him standing on his feet, he latches onto Louis' waist and walks up the stairs with him. Louis turns to Liam just as he reaches his flat and puts his hands on Liam's shoulders.

"You're a good guy." Louis says. "I don't know why I wasn't good to you."

Liam shrugs, putting his hand on top of where Louis' rests on his shoulder. "Things happen."

"I'm really drunk right now."

"I'm pretty sure I am too."

   There's a moment of quiet. Before either of them can process it, Liam leans forward, hands gently moving up to grab Louis' neck, pulling his body closer until their chest to chest and their lips are pressed together. Louis sighs at the feeling of lips against his, sliding his hands up Liam's back because  _god_ it's been a while since he's had physical contact like this. Before Louis can even  _think_ of doing anything else, Liam pulls him away.

"We're drunk and you wouldn't be this willing if you were sober."

Louis grunts, letting his head fall onto Liam's shoulder. "I wish that wasn't true."

Liam comforts Louis, rubbing at his back and kissing his temple. "Goodnight, Louis."

   The warmth of Liam vanishes as he walks down the hall and back into his flat. Louis pulls himself together, suddenly becoming sober, finding his key and unlocking the door. He kicks off his shoes, walking to the sofa and plops onto the soft, nearly pissing himself when he sees Harry sitting on the other side, only a few inches away.

"Oh, hey Curly." Louis casually says. 

"Hey," Harry says back.

Louis stretches, turning towards Harry and leaning his head on the back cushion. "Why are you still awake?"

"Um." Harry glances at the TV, then back at Louis. The small glow of the screen casting shadows of his features on his face is somehow enough to get Louis' heart nearly racing in his chest. "I couldn't sleep. It's still weird living here, you know."

"It's almost been three weeks, you'll get used to it." Louis says back, watching as Harry just nods, looking back at the TV.

His eyes continue to go back to Louis, who absentmindedly sits there, barely noticing and admiring the beauty Harry's held for so long. "Why are you still looking at me?"

   The two inches of space between their bodies is too much for Louis right now. All that courses through Louis' veins is lust. Every pulse that he feels is lust, his eyes see lust; all he can taste is lust. He starts by leaning forward, so close to Harry he can feel his breath hit his upper lip. Harry's eyes flicker from Louis' lips to his eyes until they flutter shut. Everything is still except for them. Louis' hand finds it's way to Harry's ribs, smoothly dragging it up until it reaches his neck. He softly grips Harry's jaw, gently pulling his head forward so their lips meet tenderly. A rush of ecstasy fills Louis as he pulls Harry closer until they're pressed together. His thumb drags under Harry's bottom lip, coaxing it opened until they're both deepening the kiss. 

   The odds are never in Louis' favour.

    Harry pulls away, quickly sitting up and rubbing his hand on the back of his neck.

"Wow, you're really drunk." Harry breathes. "Come on. You're going to bed."

"But--"

"No." Harry shakes his head. "Just, please. Come on, you're gonna vomit eventually and I don't want it being in here."

   Louis gets up, letting Harry guide him to his room and into his bed. He leaves for a second, coming back with a small bin as well as water and some pills.

"For your future hangover." Harry says, "And the bin to vomit in. Night."

"Thanks." Louis mumbles, watching Harry give him a pressed smile before he leaves.

 

**~~\-----------------------~~ **

 

   Louis really doesn't want to get up and face life. Or reality. Or Harry. Or anything. Can Harry really blame him, though? Liam left his lips with blue balls, and although he'll never publicly admit it, Harry's pretty fit and very much his type. It was a mistake waiting to happen.  _Wait_. Not to mention the fact that Harry kissed him back and  _didn't_ yell at him. So they  _both_ have some explaining to do. Deciding that it's best to only ignore the situation if Harry does, he takes one of the pills he had left on his nightstand and gets up.  _  
_

   The flat smells of muffins and Louis might actually faint because Harry's standing in the kitchen with his hair in a bun and an apron over nothing but his grey boxer briefs; the muffin scent isn't helping either. He may or may not accidentally slam his room door shut, causing Harry to snap his head up and Louis' headache to throb more. 

"Thanks for the aspirin." Is all Louis can get out.

Harry bites his lip, going back to mixing whatever he has in the bowl in front of him. "What aspirin?"

Is he serious? "I was assuming," Louis says, "You would be the only one here at two in the morning. Unless I was so blacked out that you had a party and I didn't even sober up to notice."

"Huh, yeah then. I guess I did-- leave the aspirin, I mean."

"You guess?" Louis asks because, what the fuck.

"Well, I don't remember shit about last night since I downed a bottle of wine whilst watching Breakfast at Tiffany's. So, you're welcome that I helped you, I guess."

"Nice." Louis forces a smile on his lips. "I'm gonna go wash off because frankly I do not remember anything after Ed gave me shots."

"I don't care." Harry hums. "You get two muffins, by the way. The rest are for the others."

"Cheers." Louis mumbles, walking to the bathroom and shutting the door.

   

   Harry was drunk too. Fuck.  _Fuck._ This wouldn't be a problem if Louis didn't secretly remember last night's events, because Harry is so oblivious and Louis is stuck carrying this fucking  _memory._ He should probably tell Harry. No he shouldn't. Who should he tell? No one. Everyone's too close to each other. Goddamn it, when did his life become a dramatic tragedy? All there needs to be is a death and it's pretty much a movie. Thats it-- he should kill himself or Harry, that'll solve things--

   Loud knocks cause Louis to jump under the spray of boiling water. "Uh-- I'm kinda busy."

"Bub, hurry." He hears Perrie call from the other side. "I wanna get some food."

"Then get food." Louis shouts back, rubbing his face and turning off the shower. 

"You're coming with me." Perrie informs him. "Sibling bonding. Now hurry up before I take Sam instead."

   

   Louis drives them to a small, sandwich shop that Perrie talks about the whole ten minute ride there.

"--and the bread is incredibly fluffy. You know, according to online reviews."

"We're here so let's go see if they live up to your expectations." Louis says, unbuckling his seatbelt and following Perrie in. 

   Once they get their food, they sit down outside since it's cloudy but not expected to rain. Perrie chats on about how she's excited for uni and how incredibly shocked she was at getting into Manchester. Louis sits and nods along, like the gentleman he is, occasionally commenting on one or two things she says. Even then, he still can't hold himself together like a normal human because his mind is filled with Harry and the kiss and Harry and the kiss and Harry and the kiss and Harry--

"Something's off." Perrie says suddenly, snapping him out of all the thoughts flooding his mind. "'s wrong?"

"Nothing." Louis lies, sitting up and smiling. "I'm dandy."

"Bullshit cos when you say  _dandy_ you're usually on the verge of a mental break down. Dish it."

Louis leans forward, sighing and putting his arms on the table and letting his head fall onto his forearms. 

"I can't hear you if you mumble, love." Perrie says, flicking his hair until he brings his head back up.

"You cannot tell anyone." Louis starts, looking at Perrie seriously. "You have to swear to me that you will not discuss this with another soul that is mine. Not even Jade, you cannot say anything. Not even in your mind. Don't think of it unless you're with me."

Perrie stares at him with wide eyes. "You're scaring me. How bad is it? Did you kill Harry?"

"No, I did something worse." Louis sighs, wiping his hands on his face. "I kissed him when I came home last night. And we were both drunk."

"You  _wha--_ " Louis hushes her as her voice begins to raise. She stares at him with her mouth gaping open and her eyes even wider. "No you did  _not._ Is this a late April Fools?"

Louis shakes his head. "I wish it was, believe me Pez."

Perrie's hands rest over her mouth as she stares at the table. When she finally looks at Louis again, she moves her hands and whispers, "You've got to tell me everythin'"

"No, absolutely not--"

"You can't just bring it up and not tell me how it happened you fucking twat." She presses. "Start from the beginning."

Louis sighs. "Okay, well first I got out the cab and Liam and I walked to our floor, and although I was plastered, I was pretty aware of everything. So, words were exchanged and I kissed him before I got into my flat--"

"You kissed Liam?!" Perrie gasps, "Let me guess, ya ran into Zayn this morning and had a bit of a snog with him? And Niall as well because he felt left out."

"No!" Louis groans "Listen, it was in the moment and we both regretted it. Anyways, he pushed away and left me with no satisfaction. I walked into the flat and I was gonna sleep on the sofa but Harry was already there. And the way the TV light was shining on his face; have you ever noticed how gorgeous he is-- sorry not the point. It's been a while since I've been with someone and I just missed being close and kissing is so great and his lips looked so nice and it happened. But for some reason it was Anti-Kiss Louis Day and he pulled away and helped me into bed. Come to find out, he was wasted as well and doesn't remember anything."

When he's done, he looks at Perrie who is way too into the story and her sandwich. "Oh my god. So he doesn't know? Did you tell him?"

"Are you mad? Of course I didn't he hates me enough." Louis hisses. "And I'm not gonna tell him until the day that I die."

"Hey," Perrie points at him. "You fancy him a bit, no?"

"What?" Louis scoffs, picking at a loose piece of string on his pants. "That would be. That would be vulgar."

"You called him gorgeous."

"Am I not allowed to appreciate his beauty?"

"You're blushing you smitten piece of shit!"

"Stop!" Louis slams his hands on the table as Perrie lets out a cackle. "So maybe that kiss was nice, that doesn't mean anything.."

Perrie raises her eyebrow, taking a sip of her drink and still peering at him over the mug.

"It's not gonna happen. We'd probably murder each other before we had a chance to get our faces near one another."

"You've just got to avoid him." Perrie says, as if Louis hasn't already tried that. "Don't piss him off more."

"You're too good to me with this advice." 

"Well, it's good to see you're genuinely interested in someone." Perrie shrugs, smiling. "By the way, I don't want you goin' near Liam cos I'm trying to help Zayn with that."

"I'm not interested in either." Louis groans, quickly changing the subject. "They still haven't gotten together? I'd assume they slept together by now."

"You'd think that, huh?" Perrie shakes her head. "It's getting dark, we better go."

   As they get into the car Louis thanks Perrie.

"Honestly. Thanks."

"It's no problem, just holler at me if you ever need to talk again. We can go get ice cream next time."

 

~~**\--------------------------** ~~

  Awkward is not a strong enough word to describe how things are for the next three weeks leading up to their first official day of uni. Harry seems to be doing fine with his stupid, obliviousness. Louis on the other hand, feels like he's going through a mental breakdown every time he looks at Harry and feels his lips in his mind. To avoid this, he spends most of his time in Perrie's or Niall's flat, hoping that the detachment from Harry will save him from going mental. 

   Right now, he sits on Niall's sofa in the dark, watching as Niall illuminates different parts of his body to the beat of _Yoncé_. It's quite entertaining considering Niall seems to be getting way too into it.

"Fire! Fire! Fire!" Niall chants, lighting up his hands and pointing them towards Louis. "Your cue."

Louis rolls his eyes, knowing that the only reason Niall lets him linger is because he's pretty fond of his power. He opens his palm, letting flames dance around his fingertips and wrist.

"Now Sam, scream!" Niall cheers, pointing to Sam who stands in their kitchen.

"I don't think you realise how damaging my power is." Sam replies, taking his tea and shutting himself in his bedroom.

   The front door to the flat opens, and a hiss sounds as well as something shattering. Jade turns on the light, looking at her leg that has a fresh, gaping slit in it longer than her hand.

"Holy shit--" Niall panics. "I'll get a the first aid--"

Jade waves him off, walking towards them as the skin begins to heal itself in only a couple seconds. "Why on Earth do you have the lights off?" She scolds.

"Niall was putting on a show for me." Louis says, pointing at Niall who wags his eyebrows, lighting his head each time they go down.

"Okay." Jade went on, "You've got all your stuff set for tomorrow, yeah?"

"Yeah." Louis and Niall answer.

"Okay, very good." Jade says, turning to Louis before she leaves. "Oh and Louis, go spend some time in your own flat, would ye? Stop annoying everyone."

Louis sticks his tongue at her, but decides she's right. "I ought to leave, she has a point. See you tomorrow, you're riding with me, yeah?"

"You bet." Niall confirms, waving as Louis leaves.

   

   When Louis enters his flat, Harry's sprawled on the sofa, giving Louis flashback from the kiss. Before he can convince himself to just move back into the old house, Harry stands up, walks past Louis, and goes into his own room, slamming the door. Well, it's better than Louis having to stare at his stupid frog face. Louis falls onto the sofa, burying his face into the seat and letting out a frustrated, muffle scream. Just as he's hating his life more by the second, he hears a door open and close. In hopes that it's Harry, Louis sits up quickly, peering over the couch. Disappointment sets in when he sees that it's Liam who's obviously looking for Louis. 

"Hey Lima Bean." Louis says, getting up from the couch and leaning against the armrest. "What's up?"

"Can we talk in, um, private?" Liam asks, pulling at the hem of his shirt and looking at the floor. 

"Private is my room," Louis says because he really doesn't need Liam having an emotional breakdown in his living room. "If that's alright with you."

"Yeah, that's-- that's fine." Liam says, following Louis into his room.

   Louis sits at his small desk in the corner and watches as Liam awkwardly stands still. 

"Just sit on the bed." Louis points. "What'd you want?"

"About the other night--"

"Liam do not make this awkward." Louis warns. "Don't do this to me in my own room I might actually combust."

"I just--" Liam licks his lips, leaning forward and actually looking at Louis this time. "Why did you do it? That's all I need to know."

Louis sighs. "I get lonely, okay? My mind had no filter over my actions and shit happened."

"So you  _wanted_ to kiss me?" Liam asks, making Louis want to choke him.

"Liam, you're proper fit. Honestly. Of course I wanted to. But don't think this means I'm in love with you, that's not the case dear. Kissing you is a great pass time and if I'm being totally honest, I wouldn't mind doing it again"

   Surprisingly, that's all the permission it takes for Liam to lean forward and grab Louis by the waist, pulling him onto his lap and kissing him as if his life depends on it. Louis gladly cooperates, combing his hands through Liam's hair as they fall onto the bed. . .

 

 

"We shouldn't have done that." Liam says, tapping his fingers on his bare chest. 

Louis turns his head, looking at Liam. "It's probably gonna happen again."

Liam sits up, hair disheveled and fresh hickeys scattering his ribs and abs. "Probably." He gets up, letting the blanket fall off his naked body as he bends down to put on his boxers and pants. "Stop staring at me."

"God forbid I look at you naked after sex." Louis mocks, getting up as well and digging through his drawer for joggers and a hoodie. "We tell no one about this, okay?"

"Fix your sex hair and no one will question it." Liam says, walking towards him and combing his hair into somewhat of it was before. 

"Lovely. And here's the story: you needed to talk to me about how terrified you are of staring uni in twelve hours. And in these final hours, you needed comforting and you know how amazing I am at comforting, so you came to me. We came in here and talked and you cried, making us closer. Got it?"

"Yep," Liam drawls, putting on his shirt and opening the door, looking at Louis up and down. "See you tomorrow."

"Be on your way, Lima Bean." Louis smiles, pushing him out the door.

 

**~~\--------------~~ **

 

   The first day of uni hasn't gone as bad as he thought it would. Louis started off his day with Communications, which isn't that bad considering he's pretty good at talking. His second class is Writing, followed by his a class for his major, Chemical Engineering and Analytical Science. Finally, his last class for the day is Statistics, which he's pretty shit at. The only bright side is that he's got that class with Perrie and Niall. 

   It's a good day, but everything is so odd. He had never thought about the fact that he's only ever talked to the mutants in the house or people who he's only seen once. Never did it occur to him that he's never been among  _social peers_. It's probably the biggest change about moving to the city and attending school.

   Perrie snaps him out of his thoughts, tapping her pencil on his knee. When he looks at her she gives him a look and pointing at the professor as if to say,  _Pay attention you dumb fuck._ Louis rolls his eyes, but obeys her silent order and listens to him drone on about measures of spread or some shit like that.

   When the class is over, the professor silences everyone. "I just wanted to say welcome back. Remember to study your notes, you'll have your first test of the semester in two weeks time." Louis, Perrie, and Niall get up, walking down the auditorium steps and heading towards the door nearest to the parking lot. Before they can leave, the professor gets their attention. He's quite old, most likely 45-55, but no younger than that. He's got a few grey hairs growing and stands tall with a fitting grey suit, too formal for the environment.

"I don't believe I've ever seen you students around." He says with a German accent. "I'm Professor Gorman."

"It's our first year." Niall says cheerily. 

"What happened to going when you were in your late teens?" Gorman asks curiously.

"Uh--" Perrie furrows her eyebrows. "We never got around to it."

"Better late than never." Louis softly laughs. 

"Interesting. Perrie, Louis, and Niall, is it?"

"Yes, sir." Niall says. "Not to be rude, sir but we've got to go."

"Pardon me for keeping you." Gorman smiles, taking his hand out of his pocket to shake their hands. "I look forward to seeing you in class tomorrow."

"Cheers," Louis says, following the other two outside and to the car where Ed and Jade wait. 

 

"Where've you lot been?" Ed asks, obviously annoyed at their tardiness. "Liam and the others already left."

"What was your last class?" Jade questions, fanning herself with her schedule and opening the car door as Louis unlocks it.

Louis gets into his seat, buckling his seatbelt and starting the car. "We had Gorman just now."

"Was it just me or did he give you a weird vibe?" Comments Perrie, "Like what was that about? Stopping us after class?"

"He did that to you guys as well?" Ed joins. "Jade, didn't you say he did that to you and Zayn as well?"

"Maybe it's just a thing he does." Niall says, "Anyways, can you stop by that Chinese restaurant? The vendors didn't have any good food."

 

~~**\------------------------** ~~

 

  **October**

 

  The semester seems to fly by quick as October rolls around and autumn begins to set in. Balancing school and home life isn't as easy as Louis thought it was, because not only does Louis have to worry about passing his classes, but he has to worry about Harry doing stupid shit in the house that pisses him off more than it should. Perrie's advice replays in his head, but that doesn't stop Louis from pissing Harry off every chance he gets as. And as for the Liam situation, occasional fucks take place here and there but neither of them are too emotionally invested so it all works out.

   Chocolate and cake are the two scents that currently fill the flat, luring Louis out of his room and away from his textbooks. The source of the smell is spotted on the counter where Harry stands whisking. Louis slowly approaches the kitchen, waiting until Harry turns to grab something out the fridge to attack. Louis goes into the kitchen, sticking his finger inside the bowl. Before he can take it out, Harry turns around, pushing Louis' whole hand in it and freezes it solid with the touch of his palm. Louis looks at him in terror, trying to take his hand out, but instead just picking up the whole bowl with his hand still frozen in it.

"Harry what the  _fuck_?!"

"If that won't teach you to keep your filthy hands to yourself..." Harry mumbles, turning around and getting an extra box of cake mix out of the cabinet. 

Louis groans, smiling when he realises that maybe it's good that they're literal opposites. With no warning, Louis erupts into flames, letting them lick all the way up to his hair. Harry shrieks, running out of the kitchen and standing in the living room.

"You're gonna burn the fucking flat down you piece of shit!" Harry yells, nearly pulling his hair out in frustration. 

Louis laughs, watching as the frozen cake mix melts and falls onto the floor, believing that he won this round. However, before he can think of mocking Harry any more, he sees nothing but crystal blue running towards him, stinging his arms.

"Ouch!" Louis yelps, holding his arm. "Did you just try  _freezing_ me?"

"It was worth a shot." Harry snaps. "Put your fucking flames out or so help me fucking god--"

"Shut the hell up, Frosty. You started it--"

"Oh because that's fucking mature--"

"And so is freezing my hand in the bowl--"

"You deserved it--"

"Louis!" Jade's voice interrupts the bickering. She says nothing else as she stops towards him, invading his flame space (seeing as she won't get hurt) and reaching her hands until they're wrapped around Louis' scalding neck. Louis struggles to get a breath of air, feeling weak as Jade squeezes tighter and he begins seeing black dots. When he feels his last flame go out, Jade lets go and he gasps for a breath of air.

"Did you just fucking  _choke_ me?" Louis gasps, grabbing his throat.

"Lack of oxygen causes flames to start going out." Jade says, then looks at Harry. "As for you." She stops towards him, smacking him so hard that the sound seems to ricochet off the walls.

"Did you just  _smack_ me?" Harry gasps this time, holding his cheek.

"I didn't know how else to hurt you without nearly killing you." Jade sighs, pointing to both of them. "This fighting  _stops_. For christ's sake, you were making  _cupcakes_. There should be nothing but happiness in here!"

"Yeah well Louis started--"

Jade glares at Harry, shutting him up. "Shut up. Not a negative word. You two need to learn to get along. End of discussion."

   She doesn't say another word and leaves them in awkward silence as Harry continues to rub his cheek and Louis touches his own neck.

"Can you just--" Harry raises his arms up and drops them. "Just say out of my way, yeah? Don't come near me, don't talk to me, don't try playing nice. Just leave me the fuck  _alone_."

   Everything in Louis' body heats up, but the flames don't flicker. If that what Harry wants, he's more than okay with it.

 

 

**~~\-----------------------~~ **

 

   They get around living with one another by glaring at each other, in hopes that the other will freeze/melt under their gaze. Anytime Louis sits on the couch with his textbooks, he can feel Harry staring at the back of his head. And when Harry is in the kitchen or hogging the TV, Louis doesn't hesitate to glare at him from the door of his room. It's creepy, yeah, but the feeling of pissing Harry off is one that he can't describe. It's all too lovely.

   Perrie comes over three days after the incident with the bowl. She lays on Louis' bed, clinking her adamantium-ed out fingers against the backboard of the bed as Louis struggles to understand the point of statistics.

"Jade told me about the incident." Perrie says, sitting up. "What was that about?"

"He froze my hand inside a bowl full of chocolate mix. Yeah, he  _froze it_ _._ Like, solid."

"No shit," she mumbles. "How'd ya get out?"

"I just lighted myself up." Louis shrugs. "Scared the shit out of him and set me free. Win-win."

Perrie cackles, covering her mouth. "I've never understood why you lads have hated each other. Like, it just happened."

"He's the most intolerant, patronising, rude, annoying, and might I add, bad tempered person I've ever met."

"Bit hypocritical to say he's the bad tempered one. You get mad anytime he breathes too loudly."

"Yeah, cos he's fucking annoying." Louis snaps.

"Hmm." Perrie hums. "You two are so difficult. I swear, we should set up cameras in here and send them into a production company in Hollywood. The Kardashians who?"

 

**~~\------------------------~~ **

   Louis' science class is cancelled for the day, and he honestly has no idea what he's supposed to do. When he gets a text from Perrie asking if he can bring her a bottle of orange juice from a vending machine when they meet up for statistics, he decides that he should spend the next two hours and thirty minutes at home. He goes down campus, walking past all the buildings and eyeing his car as he makes his way towards it. Before he can open the door, he hears rapid footsteps behind him. Preparing for the worst, he braces himself, ready to (try to) fight. Unfortunately, a voice he's too familiar with fills his ears.

"I need a ride."

Louis turns around, leaning against the drivers door. "No way in hell, Jack Frost."

"Oh, come off it." Harry scoffs. "My Childhood Education class got fucking cancelled and so did my science one."   

"Well, isn't that shit. You're gonna have to wait for Liam to get out of his classes." Louis says, unlocking his door and getting in. Harry grabs the door, not letting Louis close it.

"I'm riding with you." Harry states, not giving Louis a chance. "Unlock it or I'm telling Jade."

"Go run to your mummy." Louis mumbles, but unlocks the passenger door regardless. 

   The ride back to the flat is silent and tense, Louis genuinely thinks about driving into oncoming cars so he doesn't have to deal with any of this anymore. Luckily, his suicidal thoughts vanish when he pulls into his parking space, getting out and not waiting of Harry as he heads upstairs to the flat. When he walks in, he lays on the couch, switching on the TV and flipping through channels.

There's pounding on the door and Louis rolls his eyes.

"Open it yourself!" Louis calls out.

"You locked it you piece of shit!" Harry yells, pounding on the door harder. Louis smirks because, oh, this is just  _too_ good.

"I don't know," Louis sighs, "I just can't seem to move my legs all of a sudden."

He can hear Harry grunt in frustration, kicking and punching at the door. " _Open the fucking door--_ "

Louis gets up, walking towards the door to make sure Harry can hear him better, and dramatically gasps. "Not with that attitude, Elsa. I'm feeling offended."

"I fucking  _hate_ you." Harry harshly says in-between punches on the door. "You're a piece of fucking shit and I hope you die in there!"

"Ouch, right in my emotions."

   Louis smiles contently, sinking back into the couch and letting himself fall asleep to the rhythm of Harry's knocking.

 

 

   He's woken up by the sound of silence, and for a moment thinks that Harry's managed to get in. But he's proven wrong when he looks through the peephole and sees Harry sitting down across the hall against Jade and Perrie's door, scrolling through his phone. A feeling of smugness travels through Louis as he goes to the fridge, getting Perrie's orange juice and snatching his keys from the counter and leaving.

   Harry's head snaps up, glowering at Louis. Louis smiles, stuffing the apartment keys in his pockets. 

"It's unlocked." Louis says, leaving to his car.

 

**~~  
~~**

"You're an actual saint." Perrie bubbles, grabbing the bottle of orange juice from Louis' grasp. "Thank you, bub."

"I don't get anything? Is it cos I'm a bulb?"

"Shut up Niall." Perrie bickers just as Gorman begins to speak.

   As usual, Louis nearly falls asleep during the lecture and Perrie pinches him awake, occasionally swatting Niall on the head when he begins to drool. All in all, it's practically a normal class. When they get up to head out, Professor Gorman stops them again.

"How did you like today's lecture?"

"Ehm, it was nice. Educational." Perrie answers for them. "We're about to head off and cram for next week's exam."

"Very good." Gorman says, crossing his arms. "Winter break is coming up, yes?"

"There's like two months." Niall reminds.

"Gonna visit family?"

"Oh, we don't have much--"

Louis interrupts Niall, "We don't have much time to go back to our hometowns. You know, we still have to settle in. Plus, it's a far drive."

Gorman furrows his eyebrows, mouth partially open as he nods. "Interesting. I'll see you peers on Tuesday, yes?"

"Yeah." They all echo. 

 

   As they walk up the stairs of the complex, Perrie shakes her head. 

"I dunno, I still get an odd feelin' about him. Is it only me?"

Louis smiling at Niall as he goes into his flat, following Sam. "I can kind of see it, maybe he's just hoping for a foursome with us."

"Yeh, he does seem a bit pervy." Perrie laughs, "I'll see you tomorrow Louis."

"Bye Pez." Louis waves, opening the door to the flat and nearly jumping out of hi skin when he sees Harry glaring right at him from the couch. Louis walks in regardless, dropping his bag by the door and kicking off his shoes. 

"Pick those up." Harry presses, voice stern.

"Yes, Mother Goose." Louis mocks. "I'll do it later."

"No,  _now_. I don't want the flat looking like a bloody mess."

"Can you fuck off for three seconds?  _Jesus,_ I haven't even been home for five minutes."

Harry stands up, grabbing Louis' backpack and smiling at Louis and turning around, chucking it through Louis' semi-opened room door, sending it flying open as the backpack lands inside. Next, he does the same with Louis' shoes, throwing them until they're safety inside his room.

"Better." Harry hums, sitting back down on the couch.

   Louis' basically fuming because okay, who the actual fuck does this kid think he is? Is he forgetting that Louis could  _easily_ kill him in a heartbeat? He must be out of his mind if he thinks he can piss Louis off and get away with it. 

   

   Liam comes over around 12AM, when Louis is absolutely positive that Harry and everyone else in their hall is asleep. It's been about two weeks since they've properly done anything and honestly, it's slowly killing Louis. When he's done letting Liam make an absolute mess out of him, leaving them both panting and sweaty, he buries his face into his pillow. Just as Liam gets up to dress and leave, Louis stops him.

"Just stay the night. We could say you fell asleep on the couch and I dragged you in my room."

Liam contemplates, biting his lip and holding his shirt in his hands. "Zayn's still up."

"Text him telling him you're alright, you're just gonna crash at mine." Louis says, pulling on Liam's hand. "You'll be up and out of here by morning."

"Alright." Liam nods, grabbing his phone to send the message and quickly getting back into Louis' bed.

 

 

   The thing is, things don't go as planned. Louis and Liam end up oversleeping, meaning that Liam isn't exactly  _up and out of here by morning_. Instead, they're both woken up by a familiar Irish fuck practically announcing to the entire building what he sees in front of his eyes.

"Are you both  _naked_?!" Niall nearly shrieks, covering his eyes with his hands. "What the absolute  _fuck?!_ I might vomit, oh my god--" Apparently, Niall's screams are heard by Perrie and Jade. 

"'s going on?" Jade's voice questions, peaking her head over Niall's shoulders. "What the--  _Liam?!_ "

Perrie's voice pipes up, "Why the fuss-- _Louis?!"_ To add to the fun, Harry decides to see what all the commotion is about as well. He easily looks over everyone standing at the doorway, his cheeks turning red and eyebrows furrowing. Louis and Liam, still hazy on sleep, awkwardly squirm in their view, Liam grabbing his shirt and tugging it over his head.

"This is absolutely  _not_ what I meant when I said to not to go near Liam!" Perrie hisses, then speaks to those still gaping at the situation. "Alright, let them get dressed. It's better if we ignore the situation and pray that it doesn't happen again."

   It takes a while for the four of them to shut the door and leave Louis and Liam in there, sitting awkwardly.

"Are they gonna tell Zayn?" Liam whispers as he pulls his jeans on.

"Does it matter?" Louis says, rubbing at his eyes. "They're gonna tell the rest of the lads later, most likely."

"Yes it does matter because I don't want Zayn to think that I like you!"

"It was just sex." Louis rolls his eyes.

"Yeah but sex is sex and if I'm trying to be with Zayn thats gonna ruin everything," Liam panics.

"You--" Louis chucks a pillow at Liam, harshly whispering. "You're trying to get with Zayn and you're sleeping with  _me?!_ Liam you're the biggest idiot I've ever fucking met."

"This is you're fault too you kept sleeping with me." 

"No, if I knew you liked Zayn I wouldn't have done anything with you anymore." Louis snaps. "Go talk to him before someone else does.  _Go."_

  Liam presses his lips together, but leaves just as Louis asks.

 

 

   When Louis finally gets out of his room, Harry's in his kitchen as usual. The growling in Louis' stomach convinces him that grabbing something out of the fridge will only take a second. No conversation can be made and the situation cannot be brought up. Go time. Louis rushes into the kitchen, squeezing past Harry and grabbing left over pasta. When he turns back around to leave, his elbow barely brushes Harry's side.

Harry roughly pulls away, "Don't fucking touch me."

"I didn't even touch you." Louis argues back, not in the mood for this type of shit. Like, c'mon, it's not even evening yet.

"Yes you did, and I'm telling you to  _not fucking touch me_."

"Listen, Hardy. I don't know why the fuck you're acting pissy towards me, but why don't you fuck off, yeah?"

"You slept with Liam!" Harry yells, pushing Louis.

Louis clenches his jaw. "And that concerns you how?"

"I-- You-- Zayn!" Harry angrily stutters. "Zayn has been in love with him for how long? Waiting for his chance to be with him but he's never gotten it because of your stupid, selfish, immature, sex crazed--"

Louis calmly places the pasta on the counter when Harry's mid sentence. Then, when he knows that the pasta's safe from harm, he pushes Harry back. "That's."  _push_ "My." _push_ "Business." _push_ "Not." _push_ "Yours." Harry's pressed against the wall next to the wall, staring at Louis. And if looks could kill, consider Louis murdered.

   Finally, Harry snaps. He punches him hard in the stomach, sending Louis on the ground gasping for air. As he goes to kick him, Louis grabs his ankle, sending him plummeting down as well. Louis straddles Harry, getting two good punches on his face. When he goes for a third punch, Harry grabs his wrist, managing to knee him in the dick and getting up as Louis once again curls up in pain. This time, Harry gets on Louis, getting him three times, splitting his cheek slightly open. Louis, not wanting to be the only one with blood drawn, manages to punch Harry right in the mouth, splitting his lips (as well as his own knuckles) and watching as blood spills out. Louis can feel his skin turn into flames as the fight gets intense, giving Harry obvious burns on his arms and stomach. Considering he will melt no matter how strongly he tries using his power, Harry just takes it, opting for punches and kicks to help him win.

   Neither of them realise the other mutants have heard the commotion, being quick to pull them off one another. Zayn, Ed, and Niall hold Louis as Liam and Sam get Harry.

"Stop!" Jade screams as Louis manages to get loose, trying to dart towards Harry once again. "Niall and lads, take Louis to mine and Pez's, that's where he's sleeping tonight. Liam, Harry's staying here. One of you make sure he doesn't try ruining Louis stuff."

   Jade grabs Louis' ear, tugging it and ignoring his yelps of pain as she walks them into her flat where Perrie follows. Jade makes him sit on the couch, standing in front of him with her arms crossed.

"Explain." Louis opens his mouth to do so, but Jade interrupts as if she didn't ask him to speak. "What the actual fuck is wrong with ye? Are you mad? You must be a fucking idiot to swing on him--"

"He swung first!"

"You did just as much, if not more, damage to him. Lou, he's  _burned_. And we can't go and take him to a hospital cos his regular body temperature is unfortunately literally  _freezing_ and they'll question it. Why can't you just be civil? Is it that difficult?"

Louis sheepishly stares down at his busted knuckles.

"You're sleeping on the couch. You and him are going to get on, whether it kills you or not."

 

**~~\---------------------~~ **

 

  Louis sits on Perrie's couch, absentmindedly staring at the TV as the door is harshly thrown open. Louis looks as sees Liam standing in the doorway, arms crossed and he gestures out the door. "C'mon."

"Where?" Louis asks, staring at him and not moving.

"Doesn't matter, c'mon."

Louis gets up, walking towards the front door and changing his direction quickly to lock himself in Perrie's room. However, before he can reach the door, another Liam stands in the way.

"No." Other Liam says, grabbing Louis and walking him towards the front door where Original Liam stands.

"Let go of me you ugly twins." Louis spits, struggling against both Liams, which is a bad idea because one Liam is strong enough. They lead him to his flat, letting him go. Louis being a stubborn shit, makes other run for it, but Liam picks him up, throwing him over his shoulder. He ignores the punches and kicks being plunged into his back. It isn't until Louis begins punching Liam with his fists in flames (burning the flannel the other boy has on) that Liam practically throws him into the small bathroom and shuts the door. Just as Louis is about to attempt to kick the door down, a voice from behind startles him. When he turns around, he sees Harry being held back by another Liam duplicate. 

"No fucking way." Harry growls as Liam's duplicate instantly disappears.

"No," Louis says, looking at Harry and turning back around to punch the door, ignoring the pain that shoots through his already busted knuckles. "Let me out of here--" He goes to jiggle the knob, but when he finds that it isn't there, he begins to panic more. "This isn't fucking funny! Liam! Open the door!"

"Not until you two settle your issues!" Jade's voice yells from the other side. _Of course_ this is her doing. "I'm sick of you two ruining everything because you, so called, _hate_ each other."

"And I'm not your sex doll that you can come to when Harry pisses you off and you need to take your mind off it." Liam comments. "It's really not good for your mental health."

"This is not happening." Harry mumbles into his palms as he sits down on the toilet seat lid. "Please tell me this is not happening."

"And we switched your locks on your front door inside out so even if you guys _do_ manage to get out, there's no way you'll leave the flat. You know, until you come at peace." Jade says, "Bye lads! Have fun!"

"You fucking bastards--" Louis bangs on the door, noticing it won't budge at all. "I fucking hate you lot! Every single one of you!"

   When there's no reply Louis presses his forehead against the door. He really doesn't want to turn around and look at the stupid frog face Harry is most likely making at the moment, but he knows silence isn't going to solve anything either. 

"This is fucking stupid." Harry comments, long legs harshly kicking the wall in the crammed space. "I have nothing to fucking say to you, and even if I did, I wouldn't."

"Good, because I have nothing to fucking say to you either."

   Their stubbornness towards one another makes everything only ten times worse, considering they're stuck in deafening silence for the next fifteen minutes. The fact that the bathroom is small and clustered does not help their temper either.

"When did you even start hating me this fucking much?" Louis mumbles, hitting his head softly against the door for allowing such a vulnerable question slip through his lips.

Harry doesn't say anything back for what seems like hours. But finally, Louis hears him grunt. "The minute you started hating me first."

Louis turns around, back leaning on the door as he slides to sit down. "Don't start with that five year old  _You Did It First_ bullshit. I never hates you until you started being such a prick to me. Which, I recall is when you were eleven."

"You seem to know what you're talking about so maybe you can figure it out yourself."

Harry scoffs, rolling his eyes and playing with the extra hairband on his wrist.

"I was making a conclusion you fucking piece of ice." Louis says back, burying his head in his hands and muffling his words.

"Can you not fucking insult me when we're trying to have a goddamn therapy session?" Harry harshly comments. "It's enough having to be in this room with you but to have you be a complete prick the whole time? God is testing me."

"Would you shut the hell up?" Louis replies, looking at Harry this time. "Your hypocrisy is not welcomed in my zone."

"This is technically  _our_ zone _,_ you burnt piece of trash."

"Ow." Louis monotones, clutching his chest. "You really wound me, Icy. Please, save your savage, witty comments for a time where I am not so fragile."

Harry presses his lips together tightly, Louis can practically see his anger freezing him alive. "You're so fucking difficult."

"Me? difficult? No,  _you_ are difficult."

Harry scoffs, standing up and looking at Louis with his mouth open. Louis stands up as well so that if Harry decides to kick the shit out of him, he isn't already on the floor.

"I am not difficult, you're the little shit that always has to start a conflict!"

" _Excuse me?_ " Louis bitterly laughs, "Who was the one that literally initiated a fight because I accidentally touched him with my elbow. Barely."

" _You_ pushed me into the wall."

" _You_ pushed me first!"

"I thought we weren't pointing fingers?'

Louis pushes Harry, causing him to nearly fall into the shower. Harry stumbles, regaining his balance and roughly shoving Louis back. Eventually, it turns into them roughly shoving each other until Louis grabs the collar of his shirt, pulling him forward until their noses nearly brush. It's a moment of silence before Louis' hand slides its way up Harry's neck, clutching a fist full of hair and pulling it not too roughly. Harry's head tilts back, exposing his neck and jawline as a breath of mist escapes his lips.

   He doesn't remember how it escalates, but all he knows right now is that he's got a pretty, curly haired douche bag pressed up against the bathroom door. Louis nips at Harry's cold neck with his burning lips, leaving red marks from his collarbone all the way to his jawline. He can already feel himself getting hot (pun not intended). Hary's head rolls back again, allowing Louis to properly leave a lovebite. They both rut relentlessly against each other, breathing hard and exchanging open mouth kisses on the other's neck or collarbones. Louis turns them around, pushing Harry until he sits on the sink, knocking everything in the way down. He places his hands on Harry's knees, pushing them apart roughly and sliding his hands to the obvious bulge in his jeans.

   Harry lets out a shameless moan at the small contact. Louis smirks for a second, undoing the other man's belt and sliding his jeans off his legs and discarding them on the floor. He palms Harry through the thin material of his briefs, watching as he becomes completely undone with moans and gasps of visible mists falling from his mouth.

"Get on with it you fucking imbecile." Harry bitches, grabbing Louis' hand and putting it over his bulge again.

"You're even annoying in bed, good to know." Louis snaps back.

"It'd be better if we were actually in a goddamn bed." Harry breathes, rutting against Louis' hand.

   Louis honestly sees no other choice.

   He quickly presses his palm to the lock, letting the flames dance on his skin, then eventually the metal that separates them from the nearest bed. After the lock looks disfigured enough, he kicks the door open and looks back at Harry who's staring at him completely torn apart.

"Why am I so turned on?" Harry mumbles, stumbling off the sink and following Louis to his bedroom.

   There is no time to shut the door, Louis decides as he strips down to his briefs, pushing Harry roughly onto the bed once he sees he's in nothing but his underwear as well. He stares absentmindedly at the already healing burn marks he left Harry, feeling a bit of guilt wash over him. That quickly goes away. He straddles Harry, being blunt about the situation. "What's the plan?" He grinds down a little, smugly smiling when Harry fumbles on his words.

"I'm not gonna fucking s-say it."

Louis grinds down again, feeling Harry's abdomen muscles spasm. "Say it."

"No--"

"Fine, I'll just go--"

"Oh my god. _Fuck me_ you stupid piece of irrelevant shit." Harry moans as Louis presses himself harder on Harry.

"Hands and knees." Louis demands.

"No, I'm fine like this, thank you."

"You're fucking annoying," Louis snaps, putting his hand inside Harry's briefs and rubbing his throbbing cock, causing Harry to shut up.

 Louis reaches under his bed, taking out the small box of condoms with a mini lube packet for emergencies. This is an emergency. He coats one of his fingers with the lube, tracing along Harry's abdomen until he reaches between his cheeks, ready to prep him.

"Hey, whoa!" Harry snaps, craning his head to look down at Louis. "What are you doing?"

"I'm gonna finger you, you fucking idiot. What else?"

"If I already, like, did _that_  last night-- do you still have to?"

Louis stares confusingly at Harry. "You fingered yourself last night? Disgusting twat--"

"Answer my question so we can get on with this." Harry whines, tugging his achingly hard dick to get some friction.

"I'm still gonna prep you a bit. Don't bitch." Louis says, rolling his eyes. Without warning, he slides his finger, knuckle deep. Harry breaths out an _okay_ , panting as Louis crooks it and adds another one. Soon, he's roughly scissoring his fingers inside of Harry until he's a whining mess.

"God you take too-- uhng-- long. Hurry up and fuck me."

Louis rolls the condom onto himself, "Can you literally just stop bitching for ten seconds? Your annoying-ness is making me go soft."

When Harry goes to open his mouth again, Louis pushes inside of him, making a squeak fall from Harry's lips instead of another complain. He pulls out slowly, snapping his hips forward, the force sliding Harry an inch up the mattress. Harry winces a bit, face twisting between pleasure and pain. "You should've let me prep you properly you fucking moron." Louis says, waiting for Harry to bottom out.

"Excuse me if I just wanted to-- _f_ _uck my ass_ \--" Harry's nails scratch as Louis' back, leaving a cold trail.

"That's kind of what I'm trying to do." Louis retorts.

"Just get me off, will you?" Harry breathes. Louis does just that, pulling out again and thrusting in as Harry clings onto his back muscles, surely leaving bruises and scratches. Harry's unbelievably tight, making Louis nearly give out and collapse on top of him. Instead, he puts his forearms on either side of Harry's head, feeling his breath stutter on his neck as he continues thrusting into him.

"It's alright then?" Louis asks breathlessly and is answered by Harry's moan, confirming that he's very much enjoying it. Louis can feel his skin begin to heat, and the familiar feeling of flames envelop his lower back as Harry flinches his hands away. "You're-- **_oh_** _fuck me_ ,"

Louis snaps his hips harder, surely hitting Harry's prostate perfectly as he let's out a mixture between a moan and a yelp. "I am."

"No you imbecile-- uhhng- what if you start bu- _oh--_ burning." Harry let's his hands clutch Louis' bicep instead.

"I'm not," Louis pants, grabbing Harry's cock to get him off quicker. "I'm not pissed--  _oh fuck_ \-- _fuuck_. And are these fireproof blankets and sheets-- ohh shit-- we'd be a-alright. Now shut _up_."

Harry comes when Louis sucks a love bite onto his chest, between his nipples, and it only takes Louis two more thrusts until he reaches his orgasm. He wastes no time pulling out and tying the condom, aimlessly throwing it towards where the bin may be. He lays in bed pulling a cigarette out of his night stand and lighting it with his finger. Harry gets up as well, putting his clothes back on and giving Louis a disgusted look. "I hope that fucking kills you."

Louis rolls his eyes, blowing out smoke as far as he can until the odour reaches Harry and he flips Louis off. 

 

~~**\----------------------** ~~

  Jade doesn't come back until it's dark out, knocking on the door.

"We would open it if we could." Louis coldly remarks.

"I see you made it out of the bathroom." Jade says, immediately making Louis blush. "Did you come to good terms?"

"We came to an agreement." Harry interrupts just as Louis' about to say something. When he sees Louis about to snap at him, he stomps on his foot making Louis yelp in pain. 

"What was that?"

"Louis dropped a pan on his foot." Harry says, ignoring the kick to his shins. "But yeah. We agreed that if either of us pisses the other off, we have to go someone outside the flat to cool down. And that at least once a week we need to talk about how we're feeling."

"Is that true, Louis?"

Louis' answer is delayed because all he can do is stare at Harry in disgust. "Uh, yeah. That's right I  _suppose_."

"Good, then." He can hear Jade chipper on the other side. "I'll have Liam fix your doorknob. Oh! And I picked up a few job applications for you two. I'll give them to you tomorrow. Nanight!"

Harry and Louis both mumble a goodnight, listening as Liam soon begins working on the knob. Before Harry gets a chance to leave him room, Louis smacks him as hard as he can on the head, making a noise that echoes a bit. Harry turns around, expression pained and angry. "What the  _fuck_ was that for?!" He hisses.

" _And that at least once a week we need to talk about how we're feeling._ " Louis mocks, lips turning down. 

"I wasn't serious!" Harry spits back. "It was to make her think we were genuinely getting along, you dick!"

Louis rolls his eyes, stomping to his room, turning around and snarling, "We're never going to fuck again." 

He can hear Harry snarl back a  _Fine by me!_ before they both slam the doors to their rooms.

 

**~~\--------------------------~~ **

 

   They fuck again. It's really not planned, honestly. Louis was in his room, studying for finals that are almost right around the corner, and mid-studying, he decides that he's hungry. He may or may not have accidentally left the milk out, resulting in a full on argument between Louis and Harry. The arguing turned into yelling, the yelling turned into throwing some stuff, the throwing led to more anger, which soon led to Louis fucking Harry on the kitchen floor. When it was over, they both tugged their jeans on and didn't speak of it again.

   Today, Louis' got his first proper shift at a shop that's mostly meant for teenagers going through a so called  _emo_ phase. The only reason he accepted it was because Perrie begged him to apply with her, and when she accepted the job, he was obligated to as well. The uniforms were pretty simple, just wear black. Maybe some white if you were in a good mood, but try to wear mostly black. The interior basically looks like a run down  _Hot Topic_ with band shirts; CD racks filled with nearly every genre; a piercing station that neither of them are trained for; chipped paint on the walls; posters of Queen and ACDC; and body jewelry in a clear shelf that's securely closed. 

   They get a costumer once every hour or so, if they're lucky it'll be a group of teens. Other than that, the manager doesn't really care what they do, as long as they're not fucking or anything.

Perrie sits on the front counter near the register, playing with a small keychain, while Louis finishes his English paper. "I feel like we're impostors."

"What?" Louis mumbles hitting the backspace key absentmindedly.

"We're not true emos. We gotta do something cool, _hip_." Perrie says, wagging her eyebrows.

"And what is that?" Louis says, suddenly curious as to what Perrie is hinting at.

"We should get something pierced! Or dye our hair. That would be cool--"

"No, absolutely not."

"You're no fun!" Perrie urges, "Manny even said it's free, c'mon. I'm thinking about doing my neck and buying some silver hair dye. It'll match my adamantium."

"You say that like it's an outfit. And I'm not piercing _anything_ , alright?" Louis answers. "That's that."

Perrie smiles at him smugly, "I know just the thing then." 

 

 

   They get back home near ten at night, considering it's a Friday and Perrie stayed to get her neck pierced and had their manager's wife dye her hair. Too many dramatic changes for one night. Louis holds a bag in his hand with the spray dye Perrie had bought him and applied on him for testing. It didn't look  _horrible_ , but he knew that he was only going to apply it when he was going to work. You know, to make the emos feel welcomed. Perrie chose red for him because  _fire_ , which doesn't really make sense because fire is orange. But, whatever.

   Louis walks into his flat, heading to his room to strip down into his boxer briefs and a plain white shirt. He goes back into the living room, sprawling himself on the couch and rewatching How I Met Your Mother. He can hear Harry's room door open, but ignores it because they're back to cold stares and wanting to murder one other when they're alone. He can see Harry's shadow begin to come towards the couch, grabbing the remote from where it sits on the arm of the sofa, oblivious that Louis' there.

"I'm watching that." Louis snaps, causing Harry to jump. He stares at Louis, eyes staring at his hair, then trailing down his body, then focusing on his hair once again. Then, as if a switch goes on in Harry's head, he goes to turn around. Louis keeps staring at him because he just  _stands_ there, not moving or anything.

"Hey, tit." Louis calls, not sure if he's paying attention. "You--" His sentence is interrupted by Harry basically flinging himself on top of Louis, arms on either side of Louis' head that leans on the armrest, and head pressed against the other man's. Louis brings his hands to Harry's hips, steading him as Harry brings his knees to sit on either side of Louis' thighs, straddling him. Harry mouths at Louis' neck, nipping at his throat and dips of his collarbones. His ass is pressed right against Louis' bulge, rolling his hips as Louis pulls his hair out of it's bun, kissing at his neck as well and sucking a burning bruise onto a patch of skin that is normally hidden by his hair. Harry unbuttons Louis' pants, urging him to take them off as he gets up, discarding his clothes and getting back onto Louis' lap in a second.

"No prepping," Harry pants, "Alright did that before you got back."

" _Fuck,_ " Louis breaths as Harry licks his palm, sliding his hand into Louis' briefs. "We still need lube you fucking idiot."

Harry sticks his free hand between the cushion, pulling out a bottle. 

"Okay, who the fuck even hides lube and condoms around the house, you're a disgusting piece of- _o_ _ooh_."

"I'm riding you." Harry says as if it's not up for discussion and Louis honestly doesn't mind considering the last time they did anything was around two weeks ago. It's better than wanking in his room. Harry puts the condom on him as if Louis can't do it himself and rolls his eyes when Louis gives him a look. "Now shut the fuck up your voice is so  _annoying_."

   Before Louis can make a snarky comeback, Harry grabs his dick, lining it up with himself and sinking back on it until his thighs are flushed against Louis'. He starts moving his hips back and forth, bottoming out and sending white flashes of pleasure through Louis' body as he grabs the other boy's hips. Harry places his hands on Louis' chest, rising himself up, then roughly lowering himself until his thighs hit Louis' with a  _smack_ , filling the room along with their moans. He swirls his hips in a circle, panting as Louis begins meeting him halfway. Harry's hair falls over his face, bringing Louis close to an orgasm but he absolutely  _refuses_ to cum before Harry. He will not give Harry the satisfactory feeling of Louis busting a nut before he even gets Harry off. Louis pulls on Harry's hands, bringing him down so their chests are pressed against one other's, reaching between them to take Harry's dick and tug it until he hears the other man's breath begin to stutter.

"I-I'm g- _uh_ -onna--" Harry manages before he's arching his back, coming on both their stomachs, Louis following suit not even ten seconds later. He pulls out, groaning when he sees the mess between them. 

"Get off me so I can clean myself. And stop breathing like an obese gorilla, it's making my neck cold." Louis says, pushing Harry off.

"Don't start with me, you're the one that grabbed my dick."

"Yeah, yeah." Louis rolls his eyes, heading into the shower and closing the door, staring at his reflection. His hair is red and tousled, pink splotches from Harry's fresh lovebites mark his chest and neck and he's got dried--  _stuff--_ on him. Disgusting fucking frog. 

 

**~~\---------------------~~ **

**December**

  Finals are a little less than a week away at this point and Louis has never felt so stressed in his entire life. Well, maybe he has but this stress is just as intense. He's got everything down for his other classes, the only problem is statistics. It feels like Gorman is out to get him, Perrie and Niall. Basically all his classes because most of the mutants do not understand shit. 

   "I'm kind enough to have emailed you all a study guide. Do that, help yourself, ask me questions on what you don't understand. It is not due, But I suggest you complete it. There are a few random questions in their so you don't over work your mind with mathematics. With that, have a nice day." Gorman finishes his lesson, keeping his eyes on Perrie, Niall, and Louis as they start to walk out. "You three," he stops them, walking to them with three packets. "I could not find your emails. Must be a mess up in the system, so I printed your study guides out. Study well."

   Perrie takes them all, tightly smiling at Gorman. "Thank you, Professor. Have a good day." They waste no time walking out and heading to the car, where only Jade waits for them.

"Gave you lot your study guide as well?" Jade asks, skimming through hers as she leans against the car.

"Yeah, mess up in the system." Niall explains, "Where's Ed?"

"Took the bus cos he had a shift right after his last class." Jade informs, "Which reminds me, just drop me off at the flat. I took the day off."

"Alright." Louis says as they pile in the car. "Pez and I still have our shift. Niall?"

"Yeah, just drop me off at my flat. I'm callin' in."

 

   The store is filled with teens considering they're having a sale. A girl with neon green hair and two lip piercing slams four tees onto the register counter, startling Louis. 

"I want these." She monotones, obnoxiously chewing on her gum. Louis hesitantly smiles, ringing them up for her and putting them in a bag.

"Have a nice day." Louis says back, rolling his eyes when he sees Perrie happily doing her job. How can you be happy working in a place like this. Louis takes a glance at his reflection on the computer screen. His hair is styled up, coloured a dark red that he cannot wait to wash out tonight. His black, button up shirt has a bit of red on it as well, considering Perrie accidentally sprayed it on his shirt when she was trying to get it opened. To complete his  _I Can Totally Relate To You Emos_ look, Perrie put a fake septum piercing on him. He looks fucking ridiculous to say the least.

   When their shift is over, Louis happily drives them home, splitting ways with Perrie in the hallway and going into his flat. He plops onto the couch, a foot away from where Harry sits, staring at Louis.

"What the fuck happened to your face?"

"I work with emos, I've got to fit in." Louis says as Harry reaches out and softly touches the fake ring on Louis' nose. "That's fake."

"Yeah," Harry breathes, shaking his head and clearing his throat. "Anyways, can you stop leaving your shit at the door? It's fucking irritating."

Louis rolls his eyes, "Oh shut the fuck up, Curly. It won't kill you."

Harry doesn't say anything back, walking to his room and leaving Louis to himself.

 

**~~\-----------------------~~ **

"This question has nothing to do with statistics." Perrie mumbles, staring at the paper with furrowed eyebrows. " _Suppose adamantium was to be used on a telescope to get closer images of the sun. Why would this be good? Explain your answer._ "

"Hey, you're adamantium!" Sam points out. "You should know this, yeah?"

"It would be good because it can withstand extreme heat. Even coldness. And it'd be stronger than organic steel." Perrie says smugly. The rest of them write down her words, feeling blessed they have the kind of knowledge.

"Who knew study group sessions were beneficial." Zayn murmurs, going on to the next question.

   They go through another ten before coming across another odd one.

" _If a sonic scream were to sound in a building with 600 windows on each side of each floor, and the scream took place in the third floor, how many windows would it break?_ " Louis reads and they all look at Sam.

"Trick question because a sonic scream would break all the windows." Sam answers. "Anyways, did you guys get number fifty-eight? The graph doesn't make sense. . ."

 

**~~\------------------------~~ **

 

   It's the last finals morning and the air outside is too cold for Louis' liking as they walk to the auditorium. He actually might freeze to death. He rubs his hands together, his hot temperature creating steam in the air. He's sort of already used to the feeling of ice on him considering he's had Harry's lips all over a majority of his body, leaving a cold trail along with marks.

"You've never experienced proper winter, huh?" Niall asks, watching as Louis fidgets as a breeze passes them. 

"It's not that I'm cold, cos I'm technically not. My body doesn't go below it's normal heated temperature." Louis says, then adds absentmindedly, "It's nothing I'm not used to."

"Living with H has made you immune to the cold." Niall jokes, but Louis blushes because that kind of _is_ the case. He can feel Perrie staring at him, but he refuses to meet her gaze because he really does not want to explain this to her.

When they get into the auditorium, they take their seats, listening as Gorman gives them instructions on the final, passing out the test. It's two brutal hours of silence, Louis focusing on his test, Niall's pencil tapping, and Perrie's foot tapping. Finally, the last person turns in their packet and Gorman speaks up.

"Have a wonderful winter break!" No one wastes any time dipping out the door, and of course, the three are halted. "You have your reviews, yes?"

"I thought you said they weren't due?" Louis asks, looking at him with creased eyebrows.

Gorman seems to slip on his words, "Yes-- I-- I said they weren't for a  _grade_. Everyone else emailed them in."

They don't question it, they simply dig through their bags and hand Gorman their packets.

"Any plans for the holidays?" Gorman stalls. 

"Just staying at home. Opening presents with these lads and our other friends." Perrie says, backing away towards the door with Niall and Louis.

Gorman opens the packet, ignoring the first pages and skipping to the middle, mouth curving into a smile. "Perfect..." He mumbles, quickly looking up and smiling at them, "See you soon."

 

**~~\--------------------------~~ **

 

Louis' got Harry pinned down on the kitchen floor, flour and cake mix surrounding them and coating their bodies as they cling on to each other.

"Harder you fucking-- _ohhh_ \--" Harry scrapes his nails down Louis' back, breathing moans near his ear. 

"I know what I'm doing Frosty," Louis manages to spit back, forearms pressed onto the kitchen tile, nearly sliding out from under him when Harry tightens around him. " _Fuck--_ just shut up and stop being annoying and let me fuck you--  _oh--"_

Harry responds by biting Louis' shoulder, reaching his climax about three seconds before Louis does. Then, before either of them can come down from their orgasm, someone loudly knocks on their door. " _Shit_." Louis hisses, climbing off of Harry and pulling on his pants and shirt. He looks at Harry, who's tugging on a navy blue jumper and giggling at Louis.

"What?" Louis snaps.

Harry bites his lip, tugging on his jeans. "You've got flour in your hair."

Louis furrows his eyebrows, reaching up and running his hand through his hair.

"Here, let me--" Harry walks up to him, softly smoothing his hands through Louis' hair. Louis leans into the gently touch, closing his eyes and humming. Three knocks sound on the door again, causing Harry to flinch away.

"I'm coming!" Louis calls out, not taking his eyes off of Harry. When he opens the door, he sees Liam on the other side. "What?"

"You sound delighted." Liam greets sarcastically. "Anyways, I came to see if you guys had any duct tape, but now thinking of it, that's Niall, innit? Oh well, thanks anyways."

Louis can literally feel his eye twitch with anger. However, before he can set Liam on fire, Perrie peeks her head in behind Liam as he goes to leave.

"Louis we should go get pastries." 

"Right now?" Louis asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeh, I'm craving some hot chocolate as well." Perrie says, stepping in and sitting on the couch. "Go get dressed, though. You've got-- what is that? Flour? Whatever it is it's all over you."

Louis hides his smile, glancing at Harry who stares down at the counter, trying to hide his blush. "Give me a second." Louis says, disappearing into his room to pull on a white shirt, black rolled up jeans, and some fucked up Vans. He grabs his car keys, heading out and grabbing his jean jacket from the coat rack near the door.

"Do you want anything?" Louis asks Harry who snaps his head up, pointing his finger towards himself as if to say  _Me?_ "Who the fuck would I be talking to? C'mon, Hardy. either say something or I'm leaving."

"Glazed doughnut." Harry calls just as Louis shuts the door.

"Wait," Perrie goes back into the flat, grabbing her coat off the couch and pausing to look at Harry. "You've got a bit of flour on your neck, love. Anyways, ta! Text me if you need anything else."

 

 

 The sun sets as Louis and Perrie sit down at a small table inside the pastry shop that twinkles with fairy lights and Christmas decorations. Perrie is, once again, glaring at him as if she's trying to figure out what he's thinking. Louis wipes his face, thinking that he's still covered in flour. When Perrie continues to glare as she sips her hot chocolate, he finally snaps.

"Can I help you?"

Perrie takes an aggressive bite out of one of her donuts and answers when she's finished chewing. "You have been acting so sketchy lately."

Louis frowns. "And?"

"Do you have a boyfriend?"

"No."

"Did you pass your finals?"

"Don't know."

"Was there another season of The Fosters uploaded?"

"Sadly, no."

"Did Vee finally die?"

"No-- wait she  _dies?"_

Perrie smacks her hand on the table. "You're having  _sex_!"

Louis gets flustered this time, cheeks heating and not replying fast enough. "I am not--"

"Oh my god," Perrie gasps, leaning forward. "You  _are_."

"I am  _not_."

"If It's with Liam I will murder you." Perrie growls, "Him and Zayn are near the boyfriend stage and I do not need your penis ruining that."

"That is absolutely not the case." Louis says, pointing at her.

"Is it that guy that pierces in the shop? What's his name? Sterling! I always pegged you for the mysterious type."

"It's not him." Louis rolls his eyes, picking at the pastry in front of him.

Perrie sighs, looking at the pastry covered in powdered sugar in front of her. She runs her finger along it, looking at the fluffy, white substance. Then, in a split second, her eyes go wide and her mouth opens as if she's cracked the biggest code ever. " _Harry_?! _Really_?!"

'What--"

"The flour on your shirt, on his neck--" Perrie raises her hands, gesturing as she speaks. "You getting flustered when Niall asked you why you were so used to the cold."

"Don't tell _anyone_." Is all Louis can reply back with.

"You've honestly got to explain _everything_ to me because I am so confused I might faint." Perrie rambles, clutching the edge of the small table.

"What do you wanna know?" Louis asks, again refusing to meet her eyes.

"When did it start?" Perrie questions, finally calming down.

"Do you remember when we got into that really big fight and Jade locked us in the bathroom until we settled things?" Perrie nods and Louis continues. "Well, we ended up just yelling at each other. Eventually that all turned into sexual frustration and things happened."

"That was in, like, beginning October." Perrie recalls. "You've been with him since  _October?!_ "

"We're not dating!" Louis argues, "We don't kiss, we don't hug, we don't cuddle. We fuck and we do it fast and it's sloppy and rough and quick. No strings attached. It's like a silent agreement we made to not kill one other."

"This shouldn't sound hot." Perrie mumbles, massaging her temples with her sweater paws. "And you guys were having sex before I came in?! This is all too much."

"Before Liam interrupted." Louis says, "He fucking knocked so we had to get off the ground and put ourselves back together again."

"On the  _floor_? Do you not have any shame?" Perrie grimaces when Louis shakes his head. "This is all gonna blow up in your face, you know that right?"

"I'm having sex, I couldn't care less right now." Louis says because it's true.

Perrie sighs, pressing her lips together and crossing her arms. "Get him a hot chocolate as well, it's the least you can do."

 

**~~\-----------------------~~ **

 

  Christmas is a week and a half away and it never pined on anyone that they don't have a Christmas tree. Or decorations. This is an issue considering Christmas is one of the best holidays. Louis knows that they have the artificial Christmas tree from the old house, and their stockings plus lights and whatnot. However, that doesn't stop him, Perrie, Niall, and Zayn from going Christmas shopping anyways. Since it's near the holidays, no one is really there. Perrie pushes the cart as Niall and Louis look through lights and ornaments, placing them in the cart as they move through the aisles. Niall grabs a Santa hat, placing it on himself and wagging his eyebrows at Louis.

"Eh? They're only fifty pence. I say it's a good deal." Niall suggests, resulting in them buying nine, one for each. When they finish their Christmas haul, they split the stuff evenly between the four flats and head back to their assigned home.

"Harrywinkle!" Louis calls out, struggling to hold all the items and close the door. "Come help, you shit. I've got decor."

Harry emerges from his room, finishing putting his hair up and grabs some bags from Louis. "Whats in the box?"

"It's a small Christmas tree. Not that big." Louis shrugs. "Better than nothing, I thought."

Harry smiles at the box, opening it and setting up the small tree next to the television as Louis manages to hang Christmas lights around the walls of the flat. He takes out the ornaments next, carefully placing them on the tree. As he does so, he feels a tug on his head and suddenly everything goes black.

"What the fuck--" Louis puts his hands on his head, feeling the familiar texture of the hats Niall had chosen. He jerks it so that it sits properly on his head, turning around to see Harry quietly laughing. "Don't fucking scare me like that, I thought I went  _blind_."

"You're alright." Harry assures him, putting his own hat on and taking the candy canes out to place them in the empty spots on the tree.

   Soon, the flat lights up with Christmas spirit and it's all so nice Louis feels warm. He lights a gingerbread candle, sitting on the sofa and not paying attention to the TV, but rather to Harry's singing in the shower.

 

**~~\----------------------~~ **

 

  It's three days before Christmas, and Louis comes home near midnight from his shift at the shop. He promised his manager he'd restock all the merchandise they were selling if he could get a bit of a raise to pay for some gifts. That promise ended up being him staying an extra four hours and closing shop. So, he gets home, ready to fall into bed and sleep for eternity. His plans end up being ruined by a very drunk walking snowman. Louis opens the door, and is greeted by Harry calling out his name.

"Lou-eh! You're back from hell!" Harry cheers, holding up a cheap bottle of wine.

"Was that a pun?" Louis presses because Harry annoys him in general, but  _drunk_ Harry? He'd rather kill himself.

Harry lets out a cackle. "It wasn't supposed to be but now it is!"

"That's not how puns work, Hardy." Louis says, taking his jacket off and hanging it up.

"Drink with me." Harry says, in a normal tone this time, holding the bottle out for Louis to grab

   He doesn't know  _how_ or  _why,_ but he ends up sitting across the couch from Harry, santa hats on both their heads as they pass back and forth the half empty bottle of cheap wine Harry had been holding. 

"I've never liked the winter." Harry mumbles, taking a swig and handing it to Louis.

"Why?" Louis asks, "It's literally your time of year. You go out like it's a normal day and you don't feel anything. 's like me hating summer."

Harry lets his head fall against the back of the couch, lazily licking his lips and watching Louis take a sip from the bottle. "It reminds me of home."

"The old house was kinda shit if you think about it."

"Not that home. My  _home_ home. Before Toby got me."

"Oh." Louis says because the wine is numbing his mind a bit.

"It wasn't that great." Harry continues, "When my dad found out I was a mutant, him and my mum gave me some stuff to put me to sleep. They left me on the side of the road, not even decent enough to put me in a foster home. I guess a friend of Toby's sound me a couple days later. Took me to a doctor because my body temperature was ' _below freezing_ '. They thought I had hypothermia. Summat true, no? I remember Toby's friend just taking me and leaving. A couple days later, Toby picked me up and I was so confused regardless of how many times they explained it to me."

"I remember when Toby bought you to the house." Louis recalls, staring at his ankles. "You were, like, nine and you looked so emotionless."

"I didn't know what I was supposed to feel." Harry replies, shrugging a bit. "It was near Christmas too. And after that all I wanted as a gift was to feel at home somewhere, you know? I never have. And an aquarium. Those are cool."

Louis nods, mind becoming sober as he realises that this is the deepest he's been with Harry, and he's been balls deep in him before.

"I'm going to bed." Harry says, stumbling up. "I know you're gonna remember all this, so just don't bring it up, yeah? I don't need your dickhead thinking this is me being soft. I'm drunk and emotional."

Louis gives him a thumbs up. "Forgotten as of now."

Harry gives him a small smile in return. "Thanks."

 

**~~\-----------------------------~~ **

**Louis' Birthday/Christmas Eve**

 

  The first thing he wakes up to is the sound of an Irish fuck screaming, "SIX YEARS "TIL TURTY!" and the feeling of several bodies jumping on top of him. Well, only Niall and Perrie. The rest stand around his bed in Santa hats, some holding cupcakes.

"Happy birthday to you!" Jade sings, handing him the only cupcake with a candle. "Make a wish."

Louis rubs his hand over his face, trying to process what is going on. Oh yeah, he's twenty four. He takes a moment, blowing out the candle and stuffing his face back into his pillow. "Let me sleep."

"We've got errands to run." Jade reminds him, sitting on the bed and poking his back. "Birthday Boy and all, you're helping."

Louis groans, getting up and watching as everyone exits his room. Well, all except for Harry who didn't step foot inside it. "Yeah, alright. Just let me get dressed, yeah?"

Jade leaves him alone to get ready, which only takes about fifteen minutes. When he emerges from the bathroom, he sees Harry on the couch, turning to look at him. "If you're going to the store, get me eggs. We ran out." Louis replies with a thumbs-up, leaving quickly.

 

 

Perrie holds up a box of Christmas themed biscuits. "We  _have_ to get these."

"No, the frosting on them is vulgar. Get the sugar ones instead." Louis orders. "Let's see what else... Eggs. Frosty told me we needed eggs."

Perrie wags her eyebrows at him. "So, what did Harry say?"

"About what?" Louis replies inattentively. 

"Your birthday, you dipshit." Perrie scoffs, smacking his arm. "Did he--you know, give you a  _present_?"

"I don't know what kind of sex fantasy you've written out, but it didn't happen." Louis answers, putting the eggs in the cart. "We don't tell each other 'Happy Birthday', we haven't for thirteen years and we're not gonna start doing it now."

"You guys put relationships to shame."

"We're not in a fucking relationship." Louis groans, "We fuck. The last thing I want is to be committed to someone who I can't have sex with without burning at least once."

"You'll never learn. You keep going back." Perrie smugly points out. "That's pretty romantic to me." She trots into the frozen aisle before Louis can comment.

 

 

   The whole day is spent preparing for tomorrow. It's not like they have family coming over, but they still like to celebrate Christmas like any other family would. Except, they refuse to call themselves a family considering  _some_ people have slept with others. No pointing fingers, though. Louis spends most of the day wrapping presents he got everyone and placing them under the tree. Overall, it was a productive day, so Louis rewards himself by laying on the couch and watching Friends. 

   Harry bakes in the kitchen, making anything Jade or Niall or Ed requested for the dinner they're having the next day. It's a little past eleven when Harry joins Louis on the couch. It's silent for an episode and a half before he practically crawls towards Louis, kissing at his neck and taking him by surprise. Louis doesn't hesitate, tilting his head up and sighing with content as Harry bites a bruise onto his neck and kisses down his throat, biting at his collarbone. He places an arm on Louis' chest, heavily dragging it down until it reaches the crotch of his jeans, unbuttoning them summoning Louis to take them off. So, he does. Squirming out of them as fast as possible, Louis tugs them off in a record setting amount of time, getting a reward as Harry palms him through his briefs. 

   Harry mouths at Louis' neck, placing a kiss on his jaw before he's moving to kneel between Louis' opened legs. With no words, Harry leans down, pressing a kiss onto the obvious bulge and hooking his fingers in-between Louis' skin and the fabric. He tugs the briefs down so that they rest right below Louis' ass, exposing his obviously hard dick. Harry wastes no time, grabbing the base and slowly licking the tip of it, sending Louis' body shuddering. Then, without hesitation, he flattens his tongue on Louis' cock, licking a clean stripe until he reaches the tip, bringing it in his mouth to softly suck on it. Louis moans, and Harry hallows his cheeks, bobbing his head up and down making Louis' hands run through his hair. Harry moans around Louis as he tugs on Harry's hair, pulling it as Harry continues to take him in deeper.

   Harry pulls off, a string of saliva hanging from his lips. Before Louis can even breathe, Harry's taking him down again. It's sloppy and hot, with Louis relentlessly moaning and Harry doing the same every time Louis accidentally pulls his hair too hard. It only takes Harry hallowing his cheeks one more time for Louis to hit his orgasm, moaning out an H and arcing his back. Harry swallows without even flinching, standing up after he's finished and wiping his mouth with his hand. He's sporting an obvious boner as well, but doesn't seem to be bothered by it.

"Happy Birthday." Is all he says, voice a bit hoarse, before he leaves back to his room without another word.

 

**~~\-------------------------~~ **

**Christmas**

 

Morning comes sooner than expected with the smell of hot chocolate and everyone chattering in Louis and Harry's living room. Louis walks out, greeted by many _Merry Christmas_ es by many mutants wearing hats. Harry looks up, slightly smiling and going back to helping one of the three Liams in the kitchen with the muffins and pancakes. They open presents when they finish eating. It's not much, just a few gifts each but it's all very nice. They do what they usually do on Christmas: eat, open gifts, laugh around, abuse their powers a bit, and sing to Christmas classic. Maybe even watch a movie or two.

   Right now, they migrated to Liam/Ed/Zayn's flat considering it is the biggest out of the four. 

"One, two, three! Go!"

   They all open their eyes, surrounded by hundreds of Liams. 

"Make them shut up!" Ed says, covering his ears."It's hard enough trying to look for the real you, but to have all of them nagging at me-- oi, bug off."

Louis pinches one of the Liams nipples. "This one's not him." He announces, going to the next one and doing the same thing.

Jade looks torn between two of the Liams in front of her. "They've got the same eyes."

"Is it you? No? Okay." Niall says, passing one Liam and moving to the next. "Is it you? No? Okay."

Harry looks frustrated alongside Perrie. "Do they all feel things or no?"

Sam spins in a circle, observing them and pouting. "Can they not look so judgmental?"

As everyone is trying to figure out which Liam is  _Liam_ , Zayn's voice pipes up. "Found him!"

"How do you know?" Presses Perrie, arms crossed because she's a sore loser.

"Because he smiled when I came up to him."

"Oi, get a room." Ed rolls his eyes. "My game turn." Which is basically Ed turning invisible and hiding, and whoever finds him first gets first dibs on the pastries Harry and Liams duplicates made.

 

   It's late before anyone can even blink, and they're all yawning, bidding goodnights in the hallway and heading back to their flats. When Louis and Harry walk in, closing the door behind them, there's a mistletoe above them, and Louis bites his cheek because he  _knows_  it was Perrie's doing. Harry seems to notice it too, looking at it, then back at Louis as if to say _We're not doing this_. Louis hesitates, bringing his hands to caress Harry's face, placing them on either side of his neck.

"We can't break Christmas spirit." Louis says through the silence.

Harry brings his hands to grip Louis' waist, eyes slowly closing and mouth parted. Louis takes a moment to examine his face features, illuminated by the fairy light in the flat. He presses their foreheads together, waiting a moment before tilting his chin and pressing his lips to Harry's.

It's by far better than their drunken one. Louis grips onto Harry's neck, pulling him closer as if they weren't close enough. He parts his lips, waiting until Harry does the same thing to deepen the kiss. His tongue is slick in Harry's mouth as he tangles his hands into his hair, biting on his bottom lip and pressing his lips against it. He let's his bottom lip drag over Harry's pausing before pressing two quick pecks to his lips before pulling away.

He feels Harry breath on his lips, letting him go and walking backwards to his room. "Merry Christmas, Hardy." Louis says, opening his room door.

"Merry Christmas, Lewis." Harry smiles, a bit out of breath.

**~~\----------------------~~ **

  The kiss keeps Louis up all night, tossing any turning because  _holy shit._ It was pretty fucking amazing. Plus, it was their first proper  _sober_ kiss, and neither of them pulled away. It should've been awkward, Louis knows.

   However, everything remains basically the same after it. The only difference is they only snap at each other  _occasionally_. And it's not even heated fights, it's mostly them just bickering, and it usually ends with Louis making Harry laugh or Harry jokingly yelling at him to go away. It's strangely normal and fucking weird and he honestly feels like he's going to combust at any second.

   He's currently near the final season of Friends, on the couch and eating left overs from Christmas. It's late and it's quiet except from the murmuring of the TV. When he's too into the television to pay attention, he feels the couch sink and another body sprawl out next to him. He looks down at his lap and sees Harry's head peacefully lying, there facing the TV. Louis' hand automatically goes to run this hands through the other man's hair, untangling small knots and putting his focus back onto the TV without saying a word. Eventually, Harry falls asleep, and Louis, not having the heart to wake him, slowly untwines himself out from underneath his body. Since he's not a complete prick, he brings back a whack blanket, drooping it over Harry and heading back to his room.

 

~~\------------------------~~

   It's New Years Eve and for some reason Perrie and Louis have a shift. Then again, it's not like the mutants do anything on New Years anyways, there's no point in celebrating. The store is busy only for a couple hours, filled by teens with gift cards and money to spend. Louis rings up the last customer in the shop, looking at the time and groaning when he sees they still have two hours left.

"Sooo," Perrie drawls, hopping to hit on the register counter. "How was Christmas?"

"We spent it together, how do you think it was?" Louis says back, sitting in a swivel chair and moving back and forth. 

"Duh, but anything  _interesting_?"

Louis knows what she's hinting at. "It was so weird, cos when Frosty and I got home, there was a weird weed thing on the ceiling." Louis says, faking a curious tone. "So I took it down and went to bed. It was creepy."

Perrie's face turns red, and the skin on her hand flourishes into adamantium, barely flicking Louis, but sending a shot of heavy pain throughout his whole arm.

"What the  _fuck_ \--" 

"You didn't kiss him?!" Perrie hisses.

"Why did you have to flick me with your fucking adamantium?!"

"Because if I kicked you with my leg a all metaled-out I would've broken it." Perrie replies before continuing, "That was the perfect chance, it was Christmas! It was  _romantic!_ "

"I kissed him, okay?" Louis blurts out, not wanting to be injured ant further. "It was far better than the drunk kiss."

Perrie's eyes go soft as well as her voice, "So you guys are boyfriends now?"

"No," Louis answers. "We fuck, that's it. And kissed once, that being our last. We're not gonna play boyfriends, that's not how it works."

"You're disgusting." Perrie huffs. "All I want is some romance gossip, but no, you two are too stubborn. . ."

 

**~~\------------------~~ **

 

**11:47 New Years Eve**

 

"I'm showering," Louis warns before Harry uses all the hot water to wash the dishes.

"Hurry, I still have to shower as well." Harry rushes, abandoning the kitchen and planting himself on the couch.

"Might as well shower together to save water." Louis jokes, walking into the bathroom and quickly stripping down, turning the shower knob as hot as it will go. He steps in, letting the water hit his skin. He pushes his hair back, rubbing his face as the water hits it, washing off any oil or grime he had been carrying all day. There's a faint sound of the door opening and closing, and through the curtains he can see a familiar silhouette getting undressed. Suddenly, the curtains are pushed back, and Louis quickly goes to turn the water the setting just between too hot and too cold.

Harry winces as droplets hit him.

"Is it too hot?" Louis questions.

"Not anymore. Isn't this too cold for you?"

Louis shakes his head, "'s just  _extremely_ uncomfortable."

"Sorry," Harry mumbles, squeezing past Louis to get under the spray, wetting his hair and face and turning back to Louis. 

   Louis brings his hands up, pushing Harry's damp hair out of his face and softly pushing their foreheads together.

**00:00 New Years**

  Wasting no more time, they both lean in, meeting one another half way. Harry's cold lips press against Louis' heated ones, and it shouldn't work but it does. Their bodies press against each other, bare and radiating completely different temperatures. Harry holds Louis' waist, pressing their hips together. Steam begins to roll off their bodies, slowly filling the room around them. Parting his lips and licking into Harry's mouth, Louis grips his hair, pulling it as Harry moans into his mouth.

   Louis reaches behind him, fumbling as he turns off the water and makes it out the shower with Harry kissing at his neck. They stumble out the bathroom, still clinging onto one another's wet body. Harry's lips find their way back to Louis' as they end up in Harry's bedroom. They fall onto the bed, getting tangled in the blankets as they kiss at one another's skin. It doesn't take long until Louis' fully prepped Harry, lying him on his back and pushing into him. They're chest to chest, forehead to forehead exchanging sloppy, open mouthed kisses. Louis lazily thrusts into the Harry who slowly drags his hands up and down Louis' back. Louis can feel flames lick at his back, and Harry gasps as he runs his hands through them, not feeling any pain. Harry's cold breath shows in the air as mist, hitting Louis' jaw and sending a burning feeling through his body, and soon the flames spread from his spine to his shoulder blades. Harry's freezing chest radiates onto Louis, body temperature unharmed. Soon, he's on edge as well as Harry who's completely torn underneath him with moans idly falling from his swollen, pink lips.

   They both reach their orgasms at the same time. Louis' flames die out as he collapses on Harry, feeling his hands trace patterns on his spine. Louis eventually rolls off of him, overcome by exhaustion and falling asleep with his arm around the other man.

 

**~~\------------------------~~ **

 

   

  School starts again, and Louis falls back into the habit of his normal routine. Well, except with more Harry incorporated in it. It's odd because for the first time _ever_ , they're genuinely friends. Bantering and teasing become apart of their communication. Aside from the sex, they're pretty much close to good friends.

    It shouldn't bother Louis, it really shouldn't. But they've spent so long trying not to kill one other, it's odd actually having conversations that don't begin with cussing and end with them nearly slicing each other's throats.

   It's the second week of them being back at school, and Louis swears he doesn't hear his alarm go off. Surprisingly, Harry doesn't either, barging into Louis' room and waking him up. Louis stirs around, groaning as Harry shakes him.

 "Lou, goddamn it _wake up_." Harry shoves him harder. "We're like two hours late--"

Louis wakes up, quickly getting out of bed and unlocking his phone, seeing that they are in fact very, _very_ late. "How did Perrie and Niall and Jade and Ed--"

"Ed drove them." Harry answers, rushing out of the room.

"With what car?!" Louis calls back, tugging on joggers and his Adidas hoodie, putting a black beanie on to hide the mess that is the back of his head.

"Ed bought one a little after Christmas with the money he saved-- he _told_  you, remember? That's not the point!" Harry panics, pulling a grey sweater over his head and throwing Louis his car keys. "Let's go."

Louis catches them, following Harry down the complex stairs and to the parking spot where his car sits. He unlocks the doors, hopping in as Harry does as well, buckling his seatbelt and turning to Louis.

"Well," Harry urges, "start the car."

Louis presses his lips together, looking at Harry. "Let's just skip."

Harry furrows his eyebrows, looking at Louis as if he's gone mad. "Why?"

"Why not?" Louis says, "We've already missed our first class. It's not gonna hurt our record. We have basically the same classes as the others, so they can catch us up."

Harry bites his lip, "And what are we gonna do?"

Louis starts the car. "We'll see."

   Louis refuses to let Harry look until he's payed for them and they're inside the building. He leads Harry to the middle of one of the sections, counting down and summoning Harry to open his eyes. When he does, Louis can see his breath escape his lungs. They stand surrounded by glass walls, fish and other sea creatures swimming above and to the sides of them. Harry let's out a small laugh, turning in a circle as he observes the beauty that surrounds them.

"It's not your own aquarium, but it's close." Louis says, crossing his arms.

"How did you know--"

"You mentioned it once." Louis shrugs, watching as Harry walks towards one of the walls. A small smile settles on his face as Harry stares in wonder at the creatures on the other side of the glass. Harry raises his hand, bringing it to softly touch the glass. This is unfortunately ruined by the ice that forms from his touch, causing him to flinch away.

"This is incredible." Harry mumbles to himself, watching a shark swim overhead. "Look! A jellyfish. They look better on the Discovery Channel, don't you think?"

Louis doesn't reply, he just continues staring fondly at the other man who is clearly having the time of his life.

   They leave about two hours later after they toured the whole aquarium. Harry gets into the car with a giddily smile on his face, buckling his seatbelt and staring at Louis.

"What?" Louis asks, backing out of the parking space and heading onto the road. Harry reaches out and grabs Louis' hand.

"Thank you. A lot. This was possibly one of the best moments."

Louis stares at the other man's hand that is enveloping his. "It's no problem."

**~~\---------------------~~ **

"Tutoring?" Louis asks, looking at Gorman with wide eyes. "But-- how are we all failing?"

"You're not all failing." Gorman explains, "Only you, Perrie, and Sam are."

"This is impossible." Perrie pipes in. "We studied our bums off, I'm pretty sure we did good."

Gorman shakes his head sympathetically, "The test was worded a bit oddly, maybe it was that. But for now you three will have to do tutoring every two weeks. I already talked to Sam about it."

Louis keeps his mouth shut, mumbling a thanks and storming out of the class alongside Perrie. Jade looks at them with a quirked eyebrow as they get closer to the car.

"Something happened." Niall comments, pointing at Perrie and Louis. "Did you just figure out Gorman isn't from Iceland? It's okay, I did too. I'm disappointed."

"How the fuck is  _he_ passing?!" Louis lashes out, pointing at Niall.

"Whoa!" Jade interrupts, "What's goin' on, eh? What's got you both red?"

"We're failing statistics." Perrie grumbles, pulling on the passenger door handle roughly, then shaking it in frustration. "Someone unlock the goddamn-- ugh!" She kicks the tire, letting go of the handle and nonchalantly blowing a strand of hair from her face. "I'm okay."

"Failing?" Niall asks, "How do you know?"

"That's the reason he pulled us aside: to tell us." Louis says, unlocking the car doors. "So now we're stuck going to tutoring every two weeks."

"Weird, I'm a tutor every two weeks for Gorman." Jade comments as Louis backs out. "Liam, and Zayn volunteered as well."

"Ed, Harry, and I do golf every two weeks." Niall says, "Gorman's coach of that. How is that gonna work?"

"That's why he has students helping as tutors." Jade says, "Anyways, do you know Maxie? Well, she was telling me about some kind of club. . ."

 

   

   Louis goes into his flat quickly, pulling off his shirt and replacing it with the familiar button down he wears to work. His hair is quickly sprayed red, and he puts the fake piercing on his septum, cringing at how ridiculous he looks. Fucking Perrie. The thought of having to attend tutoring picks at him, making him in an even worse mood as he stands zoned out in the middle of the flat, staring at the TV.

"You okay?" Harry asks walking from the kitchen, wiping his hands on a rag and leaning against the sofa. 

"Hm? Oh, yeah. I'm fine. Shit day, you know?"

"Not really. You have a shift?"

"I'll be home around eight."

Harry hums. "When are you leaving?"

"Uhh," Louis slides his phone out of his pocket, checking the time and rushing to put it away and grab his jacket that hangs on the back of the sofa. "Right now, actually. Bye."

   Without even a first thought, Louis leans in to kiss Harry quickly, as if it's the most normal thing ever. It's a quick, chaste kiss Harry mumbles his goodbye into. Neither of them think anything of it as Louis leaves the flat with another faint  _Goodbye._

 

Perrie spins on the swivel chair, belting out  _Bohemian Rhapsody_ as Louis leans forward on the register counter with his head in his hands. What even was that kiss? Too comfortable, that's what. Louis isn't bothered by it, he really isn't. The problem is wondering if  _Harry_ was bothered by it. Bro-Pal-Enemies-With-Benefits don't kiss. Like he told Perrie: they don't kiss, they don't hug, they don't cuddle. They fuck. And they've broken the kissing rule several times before, but only during sex. They don't do casual  _Bye I'm Going To Work I'll See You Soon, Honey_ kisses. Except, now they technically do.

"Don't think too hard, you'll hurt yourself." Perrie says, snapping Louis out of his thoughts.

"Sorry."

"What's on your mind, buttercup?" Perrie drawls in a fake southern accent.

"Uh, nothing." Louis lies, picking his head up.

"Something." Perrie corrects. "You keep forgetting you can tell me, I don't know,  _anything_."

"Harry and I kissed." Louis mumbles.

"You're about month late with that realisation."

"No, like--" Louis sighs, gesturing his hands as he speaks. "Like, before I left for work. It was a normal kiss, like no sex no anything. It was a- a  _goodbye_ kiss. It was casual, like we were fucking  _married_ or something."

Perrie gasps, "Like in that episode of How I Met Your Mother where Robin and Ted kiss after they've broken up and she's living with him? And they're so used to it that they kiss when Ted's about to leave?"

"Yes, accept Harry and I have never been together. We have no history, that's why I'm fucking confused. It wasn't a normal thing but we did it as if we were-- oh my god I'm officially living in a dramatic irony play."

"Maybe it doesn't have to do with history, maybe it has to do with the present."

Louis furrows his eyebrows at Perrie. "Don't ever try being deep again."

"No! Hear me out." Perrie explains. "Your history with one another is basically brutal, yeah? And now, you guys are pretty close. Like, balls deep--"

"If you make another sex joke so help me  _god--"_

"I was kidding! Anyways, you guys just started out with a sexual connection, right? What if that's turning into an  _emotional_ connection?"

"I'm still not getting what you're hinting at." Louis says, causing Perrie to let out a frustrated sigh.

"You are so daft, I swear. Emotional. As in emotions. As in you both  _fancy_ each other."

Louis stumbles over his words. "I-- No.  _No._ Absolutely not. Me and Harry?  _No._ Never in a million years."

"You've actually started using his name to address him." Perrie points out smugly. "But, whatever. No feelings, 'm I right?"

Louis really,  _really_ hates her.

 

**~~\--------------------------~~ **

 

   Louis feels like he might actually kill someone. Everything related to statistics makes sense to him, this tutoring thing is complete bullshit. 

"That's what I  _said_." Louis groans, smacking his pencil down on his notebook.

"Actually, it's not." Liam corrects, "It's the  _frequency_ we're talking about."

"Yes, and the frequency of two is five." 

Liam looks down at the problem, then back at Louis. "Huh, I guess you're right."

"Why am I even here?" Louis asks, mostly to himself because  _why is he even there_? He understands every basic concept, and he was doing pretty good on his own. Plus, Liam as a tutor? Gorman hates him. He really does. The feeling is completely mutual.

"I don't know, but the Professor said we have to start meeting outside of class as well." Liam sighs, packing his stuff. "Talk to him about how to get out of tutoring tomorrow cos I'm enjoying it just as much as you are."

"Yeah, alright." Louis says, getting up and following Liam to the parking lot.

 

 

   The flat smells like pasta when he walks in and his mouth waters in hopes that Harry actually saved a plate for him. You know, since they're kind of friends now.

"What smells good?" Louis calls out, watching as Harry's head peaks out from behind the sofa.

"Alfredo. There's some left over, if you want any."

Louis makes himself a plate, sitting next to Harry on the sofa and staring at the TV and finishing his meal quickly. When he's finished, he sighs, lounging on the cushions and resting his head in Harry's lap.

"Shit day?" Harry asks, carding his hands through Louis' hair and making him relax instantly.

"You could say that, yeah." Louis mumbles, eyes closed. "I had tutoring, which was stupid cos I understand everything."

"I know what can make you feel better," Harry drawls, running his hand down Louis' abdomen. However, Louis grabs his wrist, stopping him.

"Not tonight, I'm really tired." Louis says, struggling to keep his eyes open. "I just wanna lay down, yeah?"

"Wow," Harry mutters. "You must genuinely be tired if you're shooting down sex. Alright then, give me the remote. If we're gonna spend our time on the sofa, we might as well do it right."

 

**~~\------------------------~~ **

 

 

 

 The next tutoring session is in a week, and Louis is obligated to meet with his tutor (that being Liam) before the session. The earlier, the better and the faster he can get it over with, Louis decides. Having Liam back at his flat is gonna bring back too many memories he'd rather forget, so he promises to take him to the sandwich shop Perrie (and Louis as well) had fallen in love with.

Louis' already gotten ready, waiting to leave when Liam texts him that he's on his way outside. Unfortunately, Liam takes an unnecessary amount of time getting ready, so Louis paces the living room playing Temple Run on his phone to pass time. Harry walks in, still in his pyjamas, and staring at Louis.

"Where are you going?"

Louis looks up at him. "Uh, I've got a tutoring session. With my tutor. That tutors me."

Harry raises his eyebrow up, as if he doesn't believe him. "Really?"

"Yeah," Louis shrugs, jumping when his phone vibrates in his had, signaling that Liam's outside. "I gotta go. I'll be back around six or seven."

Harry hums into the kiss Louis subconsciously presses on his lips. "See you then. Study well."

"Dont hassle me," Louis jokes, winking and leaving before Harry gets another word in.

 

 

   They spend at least thirty minutes actually going over the unit until Louis' completely out of it.

"I give up trying to teach you, you're hopeless." Liam complains, leaning back in his seat.

Louis shrugs, not putting up a fight because he couldn't care less about his statistic grade.

"Hopeless." Liam repeats, taking a bite out of his sandwich and letting the silence settle in.

"How are you and Zayn?" Louis asks out of curiosity.

"We're good." Liam says. "Not dating yet. Close, I think. I don't know, I don't wanna rush it."

Louis rolls his eyes. "He certainly wouldn't mind considering he's been in love with you since he was like thirteen."

"Really?" Liam asks wide eyed. "How do you know?"

"Oh, please. He's always shadowing you and shit. I wouldn't be surprised if he is now."

"He's not," Liam defends. "He promised he wouldn't, at least."

"That's cute." Louis laughs, taking a sip of his drink.

"How are you and Harry?"

Louis chokes on his beverage, chest heating up and eyes watering.

"Louis,  _Louis_." Liam hisses, frantically looking around. "There are flames on your fucking chest, you better put them out."

Louis does exactly that, regaining his breath and answering Liam's question as calmly as possible through his hoarse voice. "I do not know what you're talking about. Ehm.  _Frosty_ ," the nickname sits uncomfortably on his tongue, "Frosty and I are nothing."

"Uh, okay." Liam says with his eyebrows creased. "I was just wondering because you and him haven't been bickering as usual."

"It's called meditating, Liam." Louis snaps defensively, "Why don't you try it, yeah? Jesus. It's good for your fucking aura."

"Are you okay?"

"Better than you!"

Liam stares at him with the same confused expression he's had for the last five minutes. "Okay, yeah. We should go. No, give me the keys, Louis. Liam's driving."

 

   Louis gets home with his cheeks heated pink due to the fact that he basically made a fool out of himself trying to deny a question that wasn't even being implied. As he heads to his room, he sees Harry sitting on the couch, wrapped in a blanket.

"Hey, comfortable?" Louis asks.

"You had dinner with Liam?" Harry answers back quickly.

"Uhh, yeah." Louis says. "He's my tutor."

"Is he?" Harry questions, standing up and walking past Louis. "Or are you still fucking him?"

"Hey, whoa.  _No_." Louis assures the other man. "No, that was a one time thing."

" _One_ time?" Harry laughs,

"Okay, maybe more, but--"

"You are so disgusting."

"Even if I was, why are you mad?" Louis questions, causing Harry to tense up.

"Because-- I-- Zayn!" Harry stutters, pacing back and forth. "Zayn! Don't you fucking remember? And now you're sneaking around on dates with Liam--"

"It wasn't even a fucking date!" Louis yells back, "It was literally a tutoring session.  _Tutoring_. See how nowhere in there did I say  _sex_?"

"And how do I know that?"

"I'm not gonna sleep with him when--"  _When I've got you waiting for me here; I wouldn't even think of it._ "--when I have other things, like passing my fucking classes, to worry about."

"Why didn't you tell me it was Liam?" 

"Why do I need to?"

"Because you used to sleep with him! And be in love with him!" Harry rants.

"Does that fucking matter? You shouldn't care, we aren't anything." Louis starts, feeling himself start to heat up. "We  _fuck_ , Harry. That's what we do and it keeps us from ripping one another's throats off. We don't hug." Flames begin to crawl up his spine. "We don't ' _make love'_." The flames begin to lick at his shoulders and his neck. Harry's eyes go cold. "We  _fuck._ It's dirty. It's sloppy. It's fast. It's  _nothing_." He can feel his flames begin to dim down as it dawns on him. They're nothing. What they have is nothing. They don't have each other. They have  _nothing_. And they always will. "It's nothing."

   Louis can see Harry's body begin growing colder as vapour outlines his figure.

"You're right." Harry replies. "We're pretty much nothing."

   Without saying anything else, he walks into his room, not even slamming the door. Louis knows he fucked up.

 

**~~\-------------------------~~ **

 

  They're back to square one, where they began in the first place. Angry glares, avoiding one another as much as possible. The flat feels so much emptier and all Louis can do is blame himself because, yeah, Harry lashed out on him first; but Louis was the one that pushed the knife further in. As Beyonce once sang,  _I'm not at home in my own home_. Home was where Harry would greet Louis with a kiss, and say goodbye with one as well. Home was where Louis could fall asleep with his head on Harry's lap and wake up with a blanket draped over him and a plate of breakfast Harry had cooked. Home was Harry riding him on the sofa. You know, all the great things he had to offer.

   Perrie's the only one to notice the change in his mood considering she's the only one who genuinely cares. Louis busies himself by hanging and folding t-shirts around the store as Perrie messes with the piercing gun.

"Freeze!" Perrie says, voice deep and pointing the gun at Louis, frowning when he doesnt say anything. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Louis answers back quickly, giving her a tight smile.

   It's a while before Perrie brings it up again. She follows him around the store quietly, basically breathing down his neck. When he can practically  _feel_ her eyes burning holes in his neck, he turns around, "What?"

"Something's wrong. What is it?"

"Nothing."

"Tell me."

"No."

" _Tell me_." Perrie presses, pinching Louis' arm, but flinching back when he burns her with a single flame. "Dick. Is it Harry?"

Louis automatically tenses up.

"Oh no," Perrie whispers. "What happened?"

    Somehow, they end up behind the register, Louis explaining the whole fight and Perrie listening along. Louis rambles and rambles and rambles on about how he never meant to be so harsh, it just came  _out_. The sinking feeling in his chest returns when he realises that he really,  _really_ fucked up.

"You want my advice?" Before Louis can say no, Perrie gives it to him anyways. "Tell him you like him."

"I don't like him." Louis says back, "I just care about him."

"Pish posh." Perrie mumbles, "You may not see it now, but it'll dawn on you soon. Tell him how you feel, settle things. If anything, I'm sure he feels the same way."

"Don't." Louis says, "He doesn't. And  _I_ don't."

He's never been good at admitting when people are right.

 

**~~\-----------------------~~ **

 

                    **February**

   Harry's birthday is on the first day of February and Louis has nothing planned for him. Mostly because his plan was crushed since Harry and him got into the fight and we're no longer on speaking terms, let alone sexual terms. By morning, Louis is woken up by the mutants waking Harry up with Happy Birthday's and hugs. Louis just lays in his bed, unsure whether or not it's okay for him to go and say something. He wouldn't want to disrespect the frog's big day. 22. Wow, big deal. No one cares after you've turned 21. Those are the rules.

   Fortunately for Louis, it's a Monday so ha to Harry because he has classes that day. Yay for Louis because he has classes _and_ a shift, so he isn't stuck awkwardly avoiding Harry and thinking back on the blow job he had given Louis as his birthday present. He refuses to feel guilty that he's not getting Harry anything.

   Louis' at work, helping a mother of a presumable upcoming Emo choose a birthday present for her child. "They look like dog collars." The woman explains, bringing her hands up to her neck to gesture.

"Chokers?" Louis asks, receiving an excited nod from the woman.

"Yes! Yes, those. With studs, preferably? Whatever is in style, dear." Louis grabs a random choker from the glass shelf. It looks like it would be fashionable, but then again he's got red sprayed on his hair and he's wearing a fake septum piercing for gods sake. So, should he really be able to form an opinion on fashion? No. But that doesn't stop him from happily ringing up the woman's item.

   Perrie comes in an hour later, pushing her sunglasses on her head, also pushing her platinum hair back, and smiling at Louis. "You look lonely. Where's Sterling?"

"He left to get some lunch." Louis says, "Where were you?"

"I stopped by your flat to wish Harry a happy birthday and give him a small gift. Oh, don't give me that look. _You_  had a falling out with him, I didn't."

"I feel like shit." Louis says, running a hand through his hair. "He got me a blow job for my birthday. What am I giving him? Blue balls. Blue-er balls."

"Suddenly I'm not interested in your sex life." Perrie cringes. "Get him a little cupcake or something, that can't hurt, right?"

"I'm not getting him shit."

 

 

Louis ends up getting him something.

After his shift ended, he went to the bakery across the street, picking out a medium sized, chocolate chip cookie cake. He specifically asked for _Happy Birthday. I'm sorry I'm a dickhead. xx_  to be written on it. To really make up for the no blow job, he bought two cards. One being a birthday one, and the other being an 'I'm sorry for your loss' card where Louis scribbled out _your loss_  and wrote  _being a dick_ next to it. It's not much, but it's something.

It's late by the time he gets back home, and he knows Harry's still awake. Louis shoves a few candles into the cookie cake thing, trying his hardest to avoid smudging the words. He blows on the candles, igniting them and placing the small cake in front of Harry's door, putting the cards next to it and knocking. He doesn't stay, of course. He quickly retreats to his room, stripping into his pyjamas and getting into bed before he can begin to fantasise about Harry's reaction.

He'd like to imagine Harry's eyebrows furrowing, but a smile tugging at his lips at the same time.

            ~~\-------------------------~~

 

    Harry still hasn't talked to him or looked at him; he didn't even have the audacity to thank Louis for his present. To add to the list of reasons why Louis' life is complete shit, he has his tutoring session today as well. Harry, Niall, and Ed are at their stupid golf club, leaving Louis alone until it's time to head over to the campus. Liam leaves early with Jade and Zayn, so he's not technically alone.

   Perrie's on the sofa, making herself at home as she cackles to the dialogue from New Girl playing on the television.

"Have you made up with Harry yet?" Perrie asks, not taking her eyes off the TV.

"No," Louis mumbles. "As far as I'm concerned he wants nothing to do with me."

"Oh, don't be like that. He likes you just as much."

"We don't like each other." Louis tries, being cut off by Perrie's laugh.

"I don't know what's funnier, Fat Schmidt or your obliviousness."

Louis feels his pulse start to heat up slowly, but no flames lick at his skin. "What the fuck?"

Perrie turns to look at him, eyebrows creased. "What?"

Louis shakes his head. "I got like a hot flash in my veins. Like, before I usually combust into flames."

"Are you gonna burst into flames?" Perrie says cautiously.

" _No_." Louis says, looking at his arms. "That's the weird thing."

"Ignore it." Perrie says, patting his back and getting up. "C'mon, tutoring time. Off to get nagged by our mates!"

Louis follows Perrie outside and to the car. The air is surprisingly warm, but Louis ignores it, getting into the car and pulling out of the snow covered lot. Perrie turns up the radio, belting out to No Scrubs. Her strong voice fills the car, comforting Louis a bit.

"You know, in an alternate universe I think you'd be a singer." Louis says as he pulls into the parking lot of the campus.

"Enough bullshitting." Perrie hushes him, rolling her eyes and getting out of the car.

They head to the auditorium, opening the doors and walking in to the room being dark. The same heating in his pulse rushes through his body, causing him to twitch. Perrie turns to him, "What's wrong?"

"I got that weird burning feeling again. Why are the lights off?" Louis turns away from Perrie, walking around the room to find a switch. He heard a thud behind him, but before he can turn, a sharp pain emerges in his neck and everything goes black. 

 

          ~~\-------------------------~~

 

   Rattling and the sound of someone hissing at him is what wakes Louis up. His head throbs with pain, squeezing his eyes shut and grunting. It takes a moment for his vision to become clear, but when it does, he can hardly breathe. There's bars surrounding the tiny space he sits in, almost like a cage. Another hiss startles him before he can make out the surroundings outside the bars, snapping his head and seeing Jade next to him in the same cage-like box. Well, as close as she can be next to him.

"Don't make a sound." Jade whispers, eyes red from tears. "You're still asleep as far as they're concerned."

"Who is  _they?_ " Louis asks, chest heaving. "What's going on, where _are_ we?!"

"Louis, please keep it down, I'll explain what I know so far." Jade pleads, grabbing onto the bars in front of her and resting her head on them. "They have us all-- Perrie, Liam, Harry-- all of us. Liam, Zayn and I went to the auditorium to talk to Gorman before he left to go golfing. It was dark and quiet--  _so quiet_." She trembles with a sob before pulling herself back together. "Liam went down first, and I thought he had fainted or something-- but then I could see a silhouette coming towards me with a needle as well.

"I couldnt make out their face-- they were wearing a white, plain mask. But, they injected me with the same stuff they did for you lot. Fortunately enough, I'm immune to that, but they don't know. So, I just dropped and acted like I was out as well. And before you and Perrie got there, another set of people came and took Liam and Zayn and I away in a van thing. They said something about an island and as far as I'm concerned we're on a ship. Louis I don't know whats happening but I'm so  _scared_." Shaking sobs end her sentence as she breaks down.

"Why am I awake then?" Louis asks, still trying to process everything.

"I think it works differently on everyone." Jade manages to say between her harsh breaths. The sound of a large  _bang_ startles them, and she looks at Louis with panicked eyes. "Drop. Act like you're unconscious."

Louis doesn't think twice, dropping back down and closing his eyes. Boots scrape the floor as they examine all the large cells that are filled with different types of mutants.

"All clear!" The voice calls out, leaving and shutting the doors again with another  _bang_.

   Louis stays still, afraid to move just in case they suddenly come back. When he's sure that it's safe, he sits up, finally observing the rest of the room. There are cells outlining the walls, all filled with people. The one across from him has another girl, sprawled out on the floor of her cell. Her hair is green and she's wearing a floral shirt and jeans. In the cell next to him, there's a little boy, no older than six. His hair is white, and his skin is pale, revealing nearly every vein in his body.

"We all have tags outside our cells." Jade whispers."On the locks."

Louis sticks his hand through the bars, pulling the lock to face him and seeing a laminated piece of paper with words that are types.

_Louis Tomlinson_

_DOB: 24/12/91_

_Gender: Male_

_Mutation: Fire Manipulation_

_#7817_

 

"What does yours say?" Louis asks, looking at Jade.

Jade reads hers, "Jade Thirwall. 26th of December. Female. Mutation: Unknown. Number 7820."

"Unknown? Why do they have you here then?"

"I'm assuming it's because I'm associated with you lot." Jade whispers, sitting down. "And my power doesn't show unless I'm injured."

   The room shakes, sending Louis crashing to the floor and hitting his head against the bars. Jade's face fades out of his vision.

 

**~~\-----------------------~~ **

 

  The second time he wakes up, it isn't to Jade or anything comforting; it's to the sound of wailing and cursing. They're in a different room with grey, concrete floors and bright, fluorescent lights. The cells are smaller, the bars more strong and the locks are more efficient. 

"Louis!" He hears from beside him, quickly turning around and seeing Perrie who's crying tears of relief and fear. "Louis, oh my god."

"Are you okay?" Louis asks quickly, "What's going on?"

Perrie sobs, grasping onto the bars. "They're gonna do experimental shit on us, Lou. What the  _fuck_ why is this happening?"

Louis stares at her with his mouth opened because he doesn't know. Then, in a second, a thought comes crashing down on him. _Harry.  
_

"Where's Harry?" Louis questions, trying to shake the bars. "Where the fuck is Harry?!"

"I don't know." Perrie says, "There's like three different halls, we all got separated. I'm pretty sure we're on the same floor."

"We have to get out of here--"

"Tough shit." Someone beside him says. Louis turns, seeing a guy with tattoos all over his skin. His hair is a dark brown and he's got fairly nice muscles. "This is it. Even if we do escape, where do we go? They'll find us again."

"Fuck," Louis sighs, pressing his head against a bar.

"What are you in for?" Perrie asks.

"This isn't prison." Louis breaths.

"Super speed. You?"

"Skin manipulation. I'm Perrie."

"Reed."

"And I'm Louis," Louis interrupts. "Fire manipulation. Now, are you absolutely  _sure_ there's no way to get out of here?"

Reed thinks for a second, shrugging his shoulders. "Nothing I can think of. As far as I'm concerned, we're fucked."

Louis groans, looking around at the other cells surrounding them. As he makes eye contact with someone in a different cell, their pupils slit, and they hiss with fangs hanging out their mouth. Another mutant flinches at a loud noise, spikes forming out of his back as a defense mechanism. Someone on the other side of the room floats mid air, lying on their back. It's so odd because Louis  _forgets_ that they aren't the only mutants, there's probably even more that are free at this moment. An uproarious noise startles all the mutants as two big, bulky doors split open, and a familiar face walks in.  _Gorman_.

   Gorman strolls through the long hall that contains all the cells with mutants. Running his hand along the bars,he gives out a loud and echoing laugh.

"So many different powers. How pleasing. How very pleasing." A mutant pulls his hand through the bars, holding it tightly in their grasp. Gorman's skin begins to fade of colour, veins becoming visible as he struggles to breathe. An alarm sounds quickly, and a guard is shooting a sedative into her neck, sending her body limp and collapsing to the floor. When Gorman regains his ability to process things, he straightens his tie and chuckles. "You've got to watch out for the ones with death touch." He inches closer to Louis and Perrie's cell, smiling. "I remember you two."

"Get the fuck away from me." Louis growls.

"You've got quite a tongue there. You better bite it before it gets you into trouble."

Louis narrows his eyes, leaning in through the bars so that he's nearly face-to-face with Gorman. "I've always struggled with that."

Gorman laughs, picking at the tag that sits on Louis' new cell. "I'll be sure to let them know Mutation 7817 wouldn't mind undergoing some experimental procedures."

 

**~~\-------------------------~~ **

 

    Nighttime comes and he knows he won't be able to make it another day. Sweat sticks to Louis' chest, and dirty coats his hands and clothes as he lays on the floor. He doesn't know how long he's been awake, but he's not in a rush to sleep. All that fills his head is Harry. Where is he? What have they done to him? Is he  _okay_? The questions pick at him, making his stomach drop at the thought of Harry being poked and prodded as people treat him like he's an experiment.

    Between his thoughts and fatigue, Louis ends up falling asleep, waking up to cries like he did on the first day. At first, he thinks it was all just a dream. He's gonna wake up in bed with Harry in the kitchen, still mad at him of course. And Louis will go in there, tell Harry that he's the only man he wants and kiss him with every ounce of passion his body holds.

   But this is not a dream. This is reality. He wakes up on the same, cold cell floor he fell asleep on with the same dirty clothes and sweat sticking to his skin. 

   Perrie is staring at him, biting at her thumb with worried eyes. "They said the rest of the mutants they found were shipped in last night. Experimental trials on us start today." Her face crumbles as she finishes her sentence, voice cracking through the tears falling down her cheeks. "I don't want to, Louis-- I don't want them to cut me open to see what makes me different from them. We're so s-stupid, why did we think we could make it out on our own? I'm so fucking  _terrified--_ " She's cut off by a sob that escapes her lips. She hides her head in her hands as she trembles with every sob.

All Louis can do is whisper out an, "I'm sorry."

Reed speaks up, "There's nothing I can do to make it better, but I can't stand seeing you cry." Perrie looks up at him sniffling. "If you weren't here, what would you be doing. Walk me through your day."

Perrie hiccups. "Well, I'd wake up and um Jade w-would already have made me a cuppa."

"And who's Jade?" Reed gently asks. 

"My best friend. Not my girlfriend-- I'm straight by the way." Perrie's breath starts to calm. "Um, then I'd go to my classes. English, Science, Genetic Medicine, a-and statistics. Then, I'd go home and get ready for work. Me and Lou would drive there. After work, I'd get home and finish some cleaning. Then, I would sleep."

"That's nice." Reed smiles, then looks at Louis. "For a best friend, you suck at comforting."

Louis' about to say something back, but notices something in Perrie's cell.

"Reed, move around a bit." Louis demands, turning to the man. 

"Why?"

"Just  _do_ it." Reed furrows his eyebrows, pacing back and forth. Louis looks at Perrie. "Do the same." Perrie walks in a circle, sitting back down. "You have a shadow."

"Brilliant conclusion." Reed mocks. "With your wit, we'll be out of here in no time."

Louis ignores him, crouching down on the ground and speaking to the shadow. "Zayn, I know that's you. And if you're here to help, you've gotta do it  _fast_. They're gonna notice you're gone and judging by the atmosphere, alarms are gonna go off. There's a button at the end of this halls that locks and unlocks all the cells. Do you think you can do it?"

"He's officially gone mad--" Reed says, being cut off by Perrie.

"No, he knows what he's talking about."

"Go now." Louis urges Zayn, watching as the shadow slides out of Perrie's cell and into the hall. Before they know it, he's underneath the button. The black shadow forms into a silhouette, then Zayn is fully visible, pushing the button.  _Click_ s sound through the room, and Louis pushes on his cell, heart swelling when it opens. The mutants take it as their cue, pushing on their door and gasping when they see it is in fact unlocked.

"I helped the other two floors," Zayn informs all the mutants in the room, as Louis goes up to him. "The others are currently waiting in their halls. Sam is gonna give a scream and we're all busting out of here, okay? It's hard to miss, sorry to any damage that your ear drums will experience. You'll follow me and the short one."

"You've got this all planned," Louis says, smiling. "Why do you even need me?"

"Who else can combust into flames?" Zayn grins.

   Just as planned, they hear an ear-piercing scream sound. 

"Let's go!" Louis calls, opening the set of door and rushing out. The large floor of the building is scattered with mutants of every kind. Naturally, Louis falls back, pushing past people to look for the face he worries for. Then, from across the thin sea of running teens and children and young adults, he sees Harry's face. Louis wastes no time pushing past everyone, grabbing Harry's face in his hands and kissing him hard. It's obvious that Harry's taken by surprise, but he melts into the kiss anyways. Louis pulls away, checking Harry as he caresses his face. "Are you okay? Did they touch you?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine." Harry assures, placing his hand over Louis' and softly smiling. His hair is a bit greasy, face smudged with dirt and sweat but Louis doesn't find him any less beautiful.

"I'm so sorry." Louis whispers, hugging Harry tightly. The moment is interrupted by Zayn this time.

"Louis, hurry we need you at the front."

"Yeah, okay." Louis calls back, kissing Harry quickly and grabbing his hand to sprint to the front of the group. He finds Niall, Ed, Sam, Jade, Liam, and Perrie at the front as well, but it's no time for a reunion. An alarm blares as they sneak through the building, signaling the guards and everyone else that the mutants are on the loose. 

"This way." Louis leads, hiding them all behind wooden boxes and a rail. Men with guns perch on top of ramps that zigzag leading to the top floor.

"We're gonna die." Niall mumbles, becoming nauseous.

"No." Perrie says, "Adamantium can withstand any bullet or explosion."

"We don't have adamantium." A mutant says from the back.

Perrie's skin begins to be coated in the familiar silver metal. Adamantium paints her legs, going up her torso and stretching onto her arms. Her neck and face are coated with the substance, reflecting her surroundings until it reaches the roots of her hair. "Yes we do."

Louis turns to find Reed, calling him over and explaining his plan. "Take who you can, one by one, on your back. Super speed, yeah?  _Run._ That's your job, put someone on your back and sprint to the other side. These are the only guards on duty right now so you've got to do it  _fast_. We'll figure out a plan for the rest."

Reed nods, taking a random mutant and putting them on his back. Perrie steps out first, holding her arms up. The guns begin to fire loud and fast. They hit Perrie, bouncing off her and crumbling to the ground. Reed does as told, taking mutants and running with them until they're on the other side. 

Louis looks at Ed, "Go invisible now, they won't see you, they can't hit you."

Ed doesn't question it, disappearing and soon reappearing on the other side.

Louis turns to Liam, "If your duplicates die, do you?"

"That's a stupid question. No, they can't." Liam scoffs.

"Good. Give them one hundred Liams. _Confuse them_. Use some to distract them and make your run for it with the rest."

Liam sighs, but nods anyways. Within a second, there are hundreds of Liams in the building. Some stand near the men with guns, harassing them and simply laughing when they attempt to shoot them. Real Liam does as told, running with the rest of them and meeting the other mutants. 

"We need take those guys out." Zayn points out. "How much longer can Perrie hold?"

"All day, but we're not gonna let her." Louis mumbles. "Alright, here's the plan. Zayn, shadow your way up to them. Ed, turn invisible and point the guns back at them and _shoot_. Forget that you're killing people, remember that you're saving lives. If he can only get a few, Zayn you help him, okay? Pop up, choke one. Disappear, shadow another, do the same. Liam, add some of your duplicates for help."

"We got this." Ed says, "You guys go on."

Louis calls Perrie, watching as she runs towards them still shining in adamantium. "How'd I do?"

"Great, don't suit-out. We still don't know when the other guards and shit are coming."

    No one questions anything anymore, they simply just do whatever they're told to, desperate to escape. Louis jogs down the hall they've entered with everyone behind him. He pauses, looking back and forth where the hallway splits and becomes two separate ones. By chance, Louis picks the right one. He skids to a stop when a screams erupt from behind him. When he looks, he sees Harry as well as other mutants in the hold of random guards. 

"Harry!" Louis screams, running to retrieve him, but is pulled back by someone.

"We have to go!" Reed urges. "Do you want to get out of here or not?"

"No--" Louis thrashes in his grasp as Harry disappears. "Harry!  _No please_ \-- let him go!"

"Listen to me!" Reed yells, holding Louis' shoulders tightly. "We will come back and get him but right now you need to think about everyone else, okay? C'mon."

   Louis pushes a sob down his throat, nodding and sprinting to catch up with everybody else. They end up in a large, dark room at the end of the building. The roof is glass, but it's too cloudy for any light to stream through.

"I got this." Niall's voice pipes and his whole body lights up, shining white. "I'm useful for something-- Louis, where are you going?"

"I have to find Harry," Louis calls, running back to the hall where he watched Harry be taken away.

   The whole building is a maze, and Louis goes down any hallway in hopes that he'll find the familiar face he wants to see. Finally, he slides to a stop when he comes across a glass window, giving a view of what looks like a lab. It's bright, white, and so clean with surgery tools and microscopes. In one of the holding cells, Harry lays, obviously sedated. Louis holds back the tears welling in his eyes, devising a plan to get Harry out. Before he can think any further, the coldness of a gun barrel digs at his temple and he goes tense.

"You're not very smart for a mutant." A familiar German accent drawls, hooking his elbow around Louis' neck. "I knew there was something odd about you nine. And to find out you were  _mutants_? It was like Christmas."

"Let go of me." Louis grumbles, trying to squirm in his grasp.

"Do you think I'm gonna listen to you? Foolish child. You and the ice one, huh? That's an odd pair. Too bad it has to come to an end."

"Let him go, at least." Louis pleads as Gorman drags him into a separate laboratory. "Take me and let him go."

"Enough with this lovers bullshit, we both know you don't care enough to let me have your life." Gorman throws him inside the small cell, locking both locks. "I'll be back to pick that brain of yours, literally." With a cackle, Gorman leaves.

   Louis screams. He screams and he screams and he screams. he screams until he feel his throat begin to rip and collapse on itself. He screams until he's sure he's gone higher than Sam. He screams until there's nothing left to do but sob.

 

**~~\-----------------------~~ **

 

   It's been hours and Louis' fallen asleep. The doorknob to the room jiggles, then creaks open slowly. Louis opens his eyes, squinting through the brightness. He's hallucinating, he must be. An older Toby stands in front of him; his eyes are still grey, and the ends of his sideburns are now a greyish colour; what once was his scruff is grown into a beard. For a moment, Louis thinks he's died and entered heaven. The older Toby comes up to the cell, picking at both locks until they open and Louis thinks this is the most bizarre dream he's had.

"Hey," older Toby slaps him lightly. "Did they drug you up? Louis."

"I'm sleep deprived." Louis yawns. Suddenly, he beings remembering everything once again, snapping out of his sleep haze. "Toby?"

"In the flesh," Toby weakly smiles. "You've grown, Tomlinson. Now, c'mon I managed to knock out every guard out there. There's some private planes outside that some of my Air Force buddies were willing to fly out here and help out. They're nice, couches and a bed with a TV inside. We have to go now, though. There's no time."

   Louis nods, getting up and following Toby out.

"Where's Harry?" Louis asks, jogging to keep up with the man. 

"Harry?"

Louis pauses. "Is he on the plane?"

"We didn't find him." Toby says, "Is he in here?"

Louis turns back, "I'm not leaving without Harry."

"Louis!" Toby bellows, voice fading as Louis goes back into the building. "Louis you can't--"

 

    Louis is sprinting up and down the halls of the building, jumping over limp bodies and going into every room and tearing it apart in hopes that Harry's somewhere in there. He's sweating and crying in frustration by the time he's on the second floor, having looked in nearly every room. He's about to give up when he hears his name being called weakly.

"Harry?!" Louis yells back, turning in every direction. He hears it again, faint and distant. Louis starts running, getting closer and closer to the noise. Then, he sees Harry, arms bruised and covered in frost with his lips blue. "Oh my god-- are you okay? Oh my fucking god--"

Harry's eyes are focused behind him, and his throat bobs as he swallows. "Listen to me, okay?" His eyes flicker back and forth between behind Louis, and Louis' face. "I love you. I've been in love with you ever since I can remember. And I'm so sorry for lashing out-- I just wanted you to be mine and I know you're never going to be mine but for once we were  _okay_ and that's all I wanted." A whimper leaves his lips as tears fall from his face. "Please forgive me, I'm so sorry please don't hate me--"

"I could never--" Louis starts, voice falling when he sees Harry flinch and feels himself being knocked onto the ground. Pain shoots through his head, and before he can process what had happened, a kick to his ribs sends him gasping for air as it's knocked out his chest. He looks behind him as he manages to get up, seeing Gorman with dried blood on his face. This time, he sends a kick to Louis' face, splitting his lip and bruising his cheek. He hears a sob come from Harry with every blow Gorman leaves on his body. 

   It takes Louis every bit of anger and emotion to spark his hand into flames, watching as they spread through his body. He can feel Gorman flinch back, but still laughing.

"Are you going to burn me, pretty boy?"

   Louis gets up slowly, letting Gorman inch closer to him. Then, in a heartbeat, he tackles the older man, sending out his hottest flames and watching as Gorman's clothes set fire. Louis gets up quickly, putting himself out and grabbing Harry's hand, running out as fast as he can, leaving Gorman to burn alive with the building. As they make their way to an exit, Toby runs into them.

"What happened?"

"We have about one minute until this building catches fire." Louis warns, running out and finding a plane nearly ready to take off. They scramble to get on, and Toby hollers out a cue to start flying as soon as possible. As the plane lifts off an inch off the ground, the building collapses on itself, giving off an explosion that shakes the entire plane.

   Exhaustion comes over Louis and he's asleep before he can even buckle his seatbelt.

 

**~~\-------------------------~~ **

 

  Toby punches Louis' shoulder, waking him up abruptly and sitting down next to where Louis lays on the couch of the plane.

"Wanna tell me what you guys were doing in  _Manchester_?"

"Uhh," Louis mumbles, trying to rub the sleep out of his eyes. "We were being normal?"

"What part of ' _do not leave the house_ ' did you not understand?" Toby yells sternly, "Goddamn it, Louis.  _This_ is exactly what I warned you all about!" He rubs a hand over his face. "We'll talk more about this shit later, I just can't believe you guys actually left. . ." _  
_

   Louis sheepishly fumbles with the hem of the blanket, snapping his head up when Harry stirs around next to him. He wakes up, looking at Louis and smiling a bit, shifting to put his head on Louis' shoulder. Louis hugs him close to his side, letting the silence settle in for a while.

"We should probably have a proper talk." Louis suggests, feeling Harry tense up. "About us and all."

"If it creeped you out, then everything I said in there was a lie." Harry says, making Louis laugh.

"You love me, yeah? For how long?"

Harry groans, pulling away from Louis and hiding his face in his hands. "I don't know. I liked you since I was like ten and I never stopped."

"Whoa." Louis says, "I thought you hated me?"

"Of course I did, you're the most frustrating person on earth." Harry explains. "But I liked you at the same time, I don't know."

"If it makes you feel better, I had a whole epiphany while we were being held captive." Louis nudges Harry's shoulder. "I kind of like you. A lot. Maybe more. It took me a while to realise."

"So you don't hate me anymore?"

"Maybe a little. To be fair, I only started hating you cos you were a fucking prick to me first."

"Okay, that's because I walked in on you kissing Liam." Harry admits. "And eleven year old me was so heart broken I hated you so much. That ended up sticking too."

"You're so confusing." Louis laughs.

"So," Harry drawls out, looking at his hands. "What are we? Friends with feelings? Enemies with benefits with feelings?"

"Those are too long." Louis says, "I'd rather just call you my boyfriend."

Harry absolutely beams at that, still smiling when Louis plants a kiss on his lips. A foot nudges at Louis' thigh, and he pulls away, looking on the other side of him and seeing Perrie sprawled next to them, obviously barely waking up.

"That's cute and all, congrats, but can you shut up? Some of us are exhausted from being kidnapped."

"You're just pressed cos you didn't get Reed to snog you." Louis mocks, causing Perrie to kick him harder.

"I actually got his number, thank you very much."

   Louis laughs, pulling Harry closer to him and feeling his natural coldness radiate onto his skin. It's something he's willing to get used to.

 

~~\------------------------~~

**Epilogue (Five Years Later)**

 

   When Toby mentioned that they were to be in a Mutants Protection Program, Louis thought the absolute worst. He thought that he would be in France and Harry would be in Japan, and Perrie would be in Russia and the others in different countries, and that would be it. No more communicating, no more laughs and no more fun times. He never thought it would be like this though.

   Leaning on the kitchen counter of his and Harry's two story house, he laughs watching Harry step on a Lego.

"Ouch," Harry hisses, leaning down to pick it up. "Leo! How many times do I have to tell you to pick up your legos?"

A small, curly haired kid peeks at Harry from behind the wall leading into the kitchen, blue eyes squinting with laughter and a dimple denting into his cheek.

"He's  _four,_ my love." Louis defends, "He'll learn to pick up after himself soon."

"The sooner the better." Harry mumbles, circling the island in the middle of the kitchen to grab some water. "Perrie's coming over today, right?"

"Correct." Louis says, watching as Leo fully emerges into the kitchen, charging himself at Louis. He picks him up without a struggle, adjusting him on his hip.

"Aunty Pez?" Leo asks, hand smacking Louis' stubble.

"Yes," Louis says, taking Leo's small hand in his own to stop him from repeatedly hitting his face. "That's why you've gotta put all your toys away, so you and Peter can play and find them all in one place."

"Okay," Leo agrees, squirming until Louis puts him down, then runs upstairs.

"Why does he listen to  _you_?" Harry murmurs.

Louis laughs, wrapping his arms around Harry's waist and pulling him to his chest, and whispering in his ear, "He loves me more."

"Shut up," Harry smiles, slapping Louis' bum as the doorbell rings. "And who might that be?"

   Louis rushes to the door, opening it and hugging Perrie tightly.

"Oi, let me breathe." Perrie scolds, patting Louis' back.

   Louis hugs Reed next, laughing when he mentions Perrie's turning into an old woman. Harry greets them both as well, apologising when Leo comes running downstairs and nearly knocking Perrie over when he hugs her leg.

Peter stands quietly between Perrie and Reed, blonde hair and dark eyes, tugging at his dad's coat. "I'm gonna go play legos with Leo."

"Go ahead, sweetie." Perrie says, ruffling his head and watching as him and Leo run up the stairs.

"Leonardo!" Harry calls out, "Careful with Peter, don't kill him!"

"My love, they're the same age and equally as reckless. They can handle each other." Louis informs Harry. "Anyways, come on we were about to start dinner."

 

   Both Louis and Perrie were lucky enough to find partners that were fairly well at cooking. Instead of letting them help and ruin the meal, Reed and Harry tell them to just go relax; they've got dinner covered. So, Perrie and Louis sit in the living room on Louis' black couch, catching up and talking.

"Peter's getting so big, it's scary." Perrie sighs, sipping her wine. "Can you believe we're gonna have to enroll them soon? And I still don't know how American school systems work!"

"My main concern is that they're gonna strip his accent." Louis says, "He may technically be an American citizen but he came from two proud Brits."

"I never thought of that, you've got me paranoid now." Perrie says with a pout, then adds. "It feels like yesterday he was being the cutest, most oblivious thing. He used to think my real name was  _mum_. Precious, I tell you."

Louis smiles, "Leo used to think Harry's real name was Malove."

"Malove?" Perrie questions, eyebrow raised.

"Yeah," Louis says fondly, "Because I call him  _My Love_ so much. I had to break it down to Leo last month that his Papa's name is actually Harry. I just call him My Love because that's what he is, I still don't think he gets it though."

"Adorable," Perrie coos. "Married life, eh? Actually, married life for  _me_. You still have yet to pop the question."

"Oi, I have the ring. I'm taking my time." Louis argues. "We're basically already married, the only difference is we don't have rings."

"Get to it, then." Perrie urges.

Louis scolds at her, getting distracted when Leo comes up to him with his eyes full of tears. "What's wrong, bud?" Leo holds out what Louis assumes  _was_ a toy, now lumpy and flattened with a coat of frost on his. " _Holy shit._ "

"What?" Perrie peeks at the toy. "What is that?"

"I broke it." Leo says through sniffles as Louis takes it out of his hand. "I'm sorry, dad I didn't mean to."

"It's okay." Louis assures him then calls out to Harry who comes rushing in quickly.

"What is it babe?"

Louis holds up the deformed toy. "Our child has thermal manipulation."

" _What_?" Harry gasps, "How do you know?"

"Leo, angel, did Peter get you mad when you were playing?"

Leo nods his head. "Because he took my McQueen."

Louis looks back up at Harry. "Kid pisses him off, bam. Melted toy. He has a breakdown, comes down here upset and worried that he's gonna get in trouble, bam again. He freezes it."

" _Holy shit._ " Harry mumbles this time, picking up Leo. "You're officially the mutant offspring of two mutants, bug."

"What does that mean?" Leo asks, cocking his head to the side.

"Nothing." Louis says, "Dinner's ready, yes? Let's go."

 

~~\--------------------~~

 

 

   Zayn and Liam come over a week later, along with their three year old daughter, Laverne. They sit across from Louis and Harry at the dinner table, chatting away.

"Niall's with Barbara, their wedding is in a month." Harry says, reaching over to wipe at Leo's mouth. "Must be nice, you know. Planning a wedding."

'It's fucking-- sorry-- it's pretty hectic." Zayn answers, "You would know. You, Perrie, and Jade helped."

"Yeah, but that was two years ago." Liam says, "Things change. Plus, our wedding was the first one out of all of us. None of us knew what we were doing."

"It turned out nice." Louis says, "It was fun as well."

Laverne fidgets on Liam's lap, reaching out for Zayn and he happily takes her.

"And Jade's pregnant." Liam says, "She wants us to go visit her when she's due."

"All the way upstate?" Louis asks, "We'll go, of course. She didn't miss Leo's or Laverne's, you know, arrival."

"Spencer's the dad, yeah?" Harry asks, earning a bunch of stares.

"Who else would be the dad?" Zayn laughs, making Harry blush.

"Don't pick at my boy, only I do that." Louis jokes. "I got a call from Sam the other day and he's promising to visit soon. Ed as well, we're gonna need to set up a proper reunion."

"That'd be lovely." Liam agrees. "It's nice that we've all still kept in touch, you know?"

Louis smiles, squeezing Harry's hand. "Yeah, it is."

 

**~~\------------------------~~ **

   Louis' usually not a perfectionist, but things just  _have_ to be perfect. He's never been this nervous, not even when Leo was being brought into the world. His hands are clammy and he's waiting for the familiar sound of Harry's car to pull up. It does. Louis fixes his suit cuffs, standing in their garden near the pool. 

   It's set up like this: Harry will open the door, seeing a sign hung up that reads,  **Follow the rose petals.** When he looks down, there will be a line of rose petals and an aisle made out of candles places near each other. After every two feet of rose petals, there will be a card that says  **Read Me!** in Louis' slopping handwriting.

When Harry picks up the first one, it'll say:  **You're cold and I burn**.

The second one will say:  **I Guess I'll Never Learn**.

The third one will say:  **Because opposites attract, and you tend to** **complete me**.

The fourth one will say:  **I** **didn't mean to fall in love, but I was lucky enough to do it with you.**

The fifth one will say:  **We're both pretty aware that we're stuck with each other for eternity**.

The sixth one will say: **We've got a beautiful child, and many more to come.** **  
**

The seventh one will say:  **We might as well make it** **official.**

The last one will say:  **Look up.**

 

   Harry looks up, tears in his eyes and a shaking smile on his lips, letting out a mixture of a laugh and a sob when he sees Louis kneeling down on one knee, ring box in hand. 

"'Boyfriend' is too long." Louis starts, looking up at Harry and trying his best not to choke because he looks so beautiful staring down at him with all the love in the world. "I'd rather just call you my husband. Harry Styles, will you marry me?"

"Yes," Harry laughs, "As if I would say no. Yes! You're a fucking idiot, I love you." Louis stands up, kissing Harry and feeling his cold lips on his warm ones.

It feels like home.

**Author's Note:**

> oh my gosh!!! it's completed after months of me working on it! thank you for reading it, if you did. i hoped you liked it, and if you didn't i am sorry. feel free to share on twitter/tumblr and leave kudos and lovely comments. i honestly did not expect this to end up being 30k words but whatever! thank u so much to brenda, ur amazing. and marcy, if you're reading this, GET WITH THE LILO SHIP.
> 
> thank you again :)


End file.
